The 1662 Book of Common Prayer in Xhosa

Xhosa is a major language spoken by about 6.5 million people, primarily but not exclusivley in the southeastern part of South Africa. As may be seen by comparison with the Zulu Prayer Book, Xhosa and Zulu are closely related.

As mentioned in the note below, the Book of Common Prayer was first translated into Xhosa in 1865, although partial translations existed some 20 years before that.

The particular edition used for this text was printed in 1949 and appears as 193:6 in David Griffiths' Bibligraphy of the Book of Common Prayer. It contains the entire Book of Common Prayer with the omission only of some of the front matter (Preface, etc.), Prayers at Sea, and the Articles of Religion. It additionally includes the revised 1929 South African Communion service and a words-only hymnal. The monarch referred to in the prayers in the book used here is, of course, George VI and his family; no attempt has been made to update this.

This edition uses several unusually accented characters which are not part of the standard ASCII character set to represent certain sounds in the Xhosa language. Vowels sometimes have a left single quote mark above them; here a grave accent is substituted for this. Occasionally an "r" can also be found with this accent, and there are a few vowel-macrons. No attempt was made to distinguish these in the HTML text, although they obviously are retained in the PDF graphics version below..

BONKE aba-Priste nama-Dikoni bamelwe kukuti, nxa bengatintelwanga kukugula, nokuba sesinye isizatu esikulu, benze um-Tandazo wa-Kusasa nowango-Kuhlwa bebodwa, okanye ekuhleni.
Aba-Fundisi abamiselwe i-Kerike, nxa bengahambanga, bengaxakwanga sizatu sikulu, mabenze umTandazo wa-Kusasa nowango-Kuhlwa ezi-Kerikeni zabo; kubetwe intsimbi kuqala, ukuze abantu babe nokuza kuliva i-Lizwi lika-Tixo, badibane nabo emtandazweni.

INKONZO NEZINYE IZINTO ZALENOWADI.
Table of Contents

ISI-CWANGCISO SEZI-FUNDO ZEMIHLA

I-KALENDA, KUNYE NESI-CWANGCISO SEZI-FUNDO ZEMIHLA NGEMIHLA

IZI-CWANGCISO NEMI-GAQO YEMINI ZEMI-GCOBO NEZEMINI ZOKU-ZILA

ISALATISO SOKWALATA I-MINI EZINKULU

UM-TANDAZO WA-KUSASA
Morning Prayer

UM-TANDAZO WANGO-KUHLWA
Evening Prayer

I-NGXELO YO-KÒLO, KA-ATHANASIUS
Athanasian Creed

I-LITANI
Litany

IMI-TANDAZO NEMI-BULELO YAMAXESHA ATILE
Prayers & Thanksgivings

IMI-TANDAZWANA, NE-NCWADANA, NE-VANGELI, ZOMNYAKA WONKE
Collects, Epistles & Gospels

UM-MISELO WOM-TENDELEKO ONGCWELE
Holy Communion

INKONZO YOKO-BÀPTIZWA KWE-NTSANA E-KERIKENI
Public Baptism of Infants

INKONZO YOKO-BÀPTIZWA KWE-NTSANA OKWENZELWA EKÀYA
Private Baptism of Infants

INKONZO YOKU-BÀPTIZWA KWABAKÙLILEYO
Baptism of those of riper Years

INCWADI YOM-BUZO
Catechism

UM-MISELO WO-BEKO LWE-ZANDLA
Confirmation

UM-MISELO WOKWENZIWA KOM-TSHATO
Marriage

UM-MISELO WOKU-VELELWA KWABAFAYO
Visitation of the Sick

UKWAMKELWA KOM-TENDELEKO NGABAFAYO
Communion of the Sick

INKONZO YOKU-NCWÀTYWA KWABAFILEYO
Burial

UKU-BULELA KWABAFAZI EMVA KOKUZALA KWABO
Churching of Women

ISI-SONGELO, UKUSHUNYAYELWA KWENGQUMBO KA-TIXO NEZIGWEBO ZAKE KU-BONI
Commination

I-NDUMIBO
Psalter

INKONZO ZOKWENZA AMA-DIKONI, NOKUMIBA ABA-PRISTE, NOKUNGCWALIBA I-BISHOP
Making, Ordaining & Consecrating Deacons, Priests, & Bishops

ISI-MISELO SEMINI YOKUNGENA EBUKOSINI KUKA-KUMKANI
Accession Service

ISALATIBO ESIXELA ABANGAVUNYELWE UKUBA BATSHATE
Table of Kindred & Affinity

OMNYE UM-MISELO WOKWENZA UM-TENDELEKO ONGCWELE
Alternative (1929) Holy Communion

HISTORICAL AND BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.

THE first Xosa Prayer Book was printed in April, 1865. The translation was the work of the late Archdeacon Woodrooffe and Mr. T. Liefeldt. It was issued in 24mo, a volume of xx (in later impressions) + 273 pp. This book ended with the Psalter. Of this edition 27 impressions were issued between 1870 and 1902, the total number of copies amounting to 53,850.

In 1906 a revised edition was printed: a book of xx + 463 pp. fcp. 8vo. This book contained, after the Psalter, the services for the Making of Deacons and the Ordination of Priests. The late Bishop Key, the late Rev. W. Philip, and the Rev. J. J. Xaba had a large share in preparing this edition; but the work was carried through its final stages and prepared for the press by Archdeacon Woodrooffe, assisted by the Rev. S. J. Wallis, S.S.J.E. Of this edition 7 impressions were issued up to November, 1915, making a total of 44,500 copies.

A re-revised edition was printed in September, 1916, in the same size. This — the present — book (xxiv + 530pp.), known as the Complete Edition, contains in addition the service for the Consecration of Bishops, the Accession Services, and the Table of Affinity. The revision, which did not extend to the Epistles and Gospels, and the Psalter, was made by the Prayer Book Revision Committee of the Diocese of St.John's in October, 1914, the Grahamstown Translations Committee being represented by Canon Wyche and the Rev. D. Magas. The volume was prepared for the press, at the request of the Bishop of St. John's, by Father Wallis.

September, 1916. (Complete Edition) . . . 10,000
Reprinted, 1918-1949 . . . 136,000

(The above note appears on the verso of the title page in the source text used here.)

Download:
the entire BCP as PDF graphics (39 MB)
Services only (16 MB)
Collects, Epistles & Gospels (12 MB)
Psalter (11 MB)

Hymnal (20 MB)

(The above files do have text "behind" the graphics, however that text is uncorrected.)

Web author: Charles Wohlers

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