Linguistic Computing

The invention of the computer has greatly increased the pace of Bible translation. While software isn’t able to replace the language analysis work that translators perform, it can greatly assist translators in a number of ways, including storing, sorting, comparing and preparing data for publication. This allows translators to focus on the main challenges, while allowing the computer to handle much of the tedious and repetitive tasks once associated with their work.

Wycliffe’s affiliate organization, SIL, has developed over 60 pieces of software to help translation and linguistic fieldworkers. See the examples below. Many are available for free download. Around the world, people involved in doing Bible translation are using these extraordinary tools.

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It’s complicated stuff (linguistics and technology), but here are a few examples with some fairly non-technical descriptions to give you an idea of the impact of this developmental work:

Adapt It

Adapt It is a software package for translating related languages. The user(s) must know both languages being engaged. Because this process doesn’t require linguistic analysis, individuals who have very little linguistic training can use Adapt It. Read more about this software.

CARLA

CARLA stands for Computer-Assisted Related Language Adaptation. This program converts text in one language to another related language using rules that are based on the parsing (pulling apart) of the original data. It also can be used to check for spelling errors. A larger version of the original CARLA is CarlaStudio—a suite of integrated software.

Translator's Workplace

Translator's Workplace is a collection of the primary reference materials that Bible translators use. It is a joint project between SIL and the United Bible Societies.

Shoebox

Shoebox is a computer program that helps field linguists and anthropologists bring together various kinds of text data: lexical, cultural, grammatical, etc. It has flexible options for sorting, selecting and displaying data. It is especially useful for helping researchers build a dictionary. A new and improved version of Shoebox is available called Toolbox.

Paratext

Paratext and related tools are a collection of Bible translation software programs developed by the United Bible Societies. These tools allow you to input, edit and check a translation of the Scriptures, based on the original Greek and Hebrew texts.

NRSI

NRSI (Non-Roman Script Initiative) is not a computer program, per se, but rather a research and development team within SIL International. Its mission is to provide guidance, information, research and development for SIL and its partners. It facilitates the use of non-Roman and complex scripts in linguistic study, translation, literacy and publishing.

Wycliffe offers many other opportunities for using your Information Technology skills in support of Bible translation.

ADAPT IT:

Meeting the Challenge of Vision 2025

One software package, two related languages, a non-linguist project-team, and a first draft of the New Testament completed in four to eight months.

The software is Adapt It, and already it is increasing the rate of Bible translation in the Pacific and beyond. This Windows-based package helps a bilingual translator—typically an indigenous person—to translate Scripture or other text from a second language that they know, into their own language.

With Adapt It, no linguistic analysis is performed, therefore, it can be an appropriate tool for users who have little linguistic training. “Training and practice can be done in one week, real work accomplished on the first day,” said Kathy Russel, an SIL* member in Papua New Guinea.

How it Works

When a user translates a word or phrase from one language into another, Adapt It stores that information. As the translator approaches each new word or phrase, Adapt It compares it with those it has already stored. If it finds a match with a unique translation, it will automatically insert the translation and move ahead to the next word. But if the match has more than one translation already stored, it prompts the translator, who can then decide if the match is accurate for reuse or if a new word or phrase is more appropriate.

Bruce Waters, an SIL member and creator of Adapt It, said, “It is exciting to see that Adapt It is encouraging a shift away from the old thinking that we can only expect to produce a translation in one dialect per language, or one language of a group of closely-related ones.” Using Adapt It, a translator can produce a whole string of translations.

Aluis Simatab, a national translator working with the Arapesh language project of Papua New Guinea, is using Adapt It to translate from Arapesh into the Western Arapesh dialect. Once that is complete, he plans to undertake a chain of language translations, each one enabling the next to be completed.“It is now possible to talk of small language and dialect groups being able to access God’s Word in their own dialect instead of having to struggle with someone else’s dialect or a related language,” Waters said.