Malagasy is the language of the vast majority of the 20,000,000 people who live on the island of Madagascar. It, unusually among African languages, is more closely related to Malay and other Austronesian languages of Southeast Asia. While most consider it to be a single language (albeit with dialects), Ethnologue calls Malagasy a "macrolanguage" and divides it into ten different but related languages spoken on Madagascar. Of these, "Plateau" Malagasy is the official and most widely spoken.

The Book of Common Prayer was first translated into Malagasy in 1864 (this edition is online thanks to Google Books) and has gone through several editions down to the present day. The translation presented here was done by the Revs. Francis Ambrose Gregory (1819-1911; later Bishop of Mauritius) and Alfred Smith. It was first printed in 1888; this printing dates from 1904. It contains nearly the whole of the BCP but curiously omits Holy Communion (which is given here from another copy). It appears in David Griffiths' Bibliography of the Book of Common Prayer as 95:4; more information about this and other earlier Malagasy translations may be found in Chapter 50 of William Muss-Arnolt's The Book of Common Prayer Among the Nations of the World.

Anglicanism was made the State Religion of Madagascar by Queen Ranavalona II in 1869, and remained so until Madagascar was conquered by the French and became their colony in 1896.

This 1904 BCP is presented here in two ways: First, the major services are given as HTML text (see the links immediately below); and second, the entire book is available as PDF graphics. The PDF version does have text "behind it", making it searchable, but this text has not been corrected and undoubtedly contains errors.
 

Contents

Calendar & Tables
Ny Filaharan’ Ny Fivavahana Maraina
  Morning Prayer
Ny Filaharan’ Ny Fivavahana Hariva
  Evening Prayer
Quicunque Vult (Athanasian Creed)
Ny Litany
Fivavahana sy Fisaorana
  Prayers & Thanksgivings
Ny Kolekta sy ny Epistola ary ny Filazantsara
 Collects, Epistles & Gospels
Ny Filaharan’ ny Eokarista, na Komoniona Masina
  Holy Communion (includes Communion of the Sick)
Ny Fanaovana Batisa ny Zaza atao ao An-trano Finagonana
  The Order of Baptism, both Public & Private
Ny Fanaovana Batisa ny Olon-dehibe
  The Order of Baptism for those of Riper Years
Katekisma
  Catechism
Ny Fanaovana Konfirmationa
  Confirmation
Ny Fomba Fanamasinana ny Mariazy
  Marriage
Ny Fomba Famagiana ny Marary
  Visitation of the Sick
Ny Fomba Fanao
  Burial
Ny Fanaovan’ ny Vehivavy Fisaorana Rehefa avy Niteraka izy
  Thanksgiving of Women after Childbirth
Kominationa
  Commination
Ny Fomba Fanaovana Diakona
  Form for Making Deacons
Ny Fomba Fanendrena ny Presbytera
  The Ordering of Priests
Ny Fomba Fanamasinana Arkeveka na Eveka ...
  Consecration of Bishops

View or download the entire book as a single PDF file (size = 14 MB)