Jehovah’s Witnesses Promote the Hausa Language with New Translation Office
The Jos Facility to Benefit an estimated 45 million Speakers of Hausa
JOS – On June 15, 2024, Jehovah’s Witnesses will inaugurate a new office building dedicated to Hausa translation in Jos, Plateau State Nigeria.
Located at Jos Plateau State, the facility’s purpose is to overcome language barriers by providing people with educational and Bible-based publications in Hausa.
“This initiative of translating free publications benefits the entire area because it allows for information to be available in Hausa,” said Paul Alozie, Local Spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “This contributes to the development and education of the approximately 45 million Hausa speakers in Nigeria, as well as aiding in the preservation of the language. Jehovah’s Witnesses are excited about this linguistical contribution to society.”
The Hausa people are the largest ethnic group in Nigeria. They are mainly settled in the Northern part of the Country.
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Of the more than 8,800,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses around the world, more than 400,000 reside in Nigeria.
Since 1932, the difficult work of Hausa translation has been carried out by an accomplished group of local volunteers—mostly all native speakers—to ensure the highest quality translation possible.
Unlike automatic translation software, the translators take into consideration all the nuanced aspects of the culture to achieve a clear and natural translation.
So far, the team has completed the translation of hundreds of printed books brochures and audio publications in addition to, digital and video publications that can be downloaded, at no cost, from the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ official website jw.org.
The new 5,190 square-meter facility is expected to accommodate 12 translators
“This new translation facility will allow for greater collaboration and provide translators with the resources they need in a centralized location,” said Paul Alozie.
For more information on Jehovah’s Witnesses, please visit jw.org, which features practical Bible-based content in over 1,070 languages.
