Diangello Bible Revision

• Location: Asia
• Pseudonym: Diangello (pronounced dee-an-gel’-ow)
• New Testament Completion Date: 1995
• Bible Completion Date: 2014
• Bible Revision Target Date: 2033

The Diangello people group numbers between 6,000-8,000, with about 3,900 professing Christianity and worshiping in 30 Baptist churches. Although the Diangello generally experience a 50% literacy rate, the combined efforts of missionary day schools in the villages and night school adult education programs in the churches have resulted in a higher literacy rate (60%-90%) among the Diangello believers.

The history of Christianity among the Diangello began with an evangelism ministry by a neighboring tribe in 1919. The few Diangello converts who heard the gospel and accepted Christ began to experience persecution that eventually led to excommunication from their villages. After some time, the villages accepted the Christians back into their communities without requiring them to renounce their faith.

As the body of believers grew among the Diangello people, so did their desire for God’s Word, but they only possessed portions of the Bible. In 1985, they contacted Bibles International for assistance in translating the New Testament into their language. The main translator assigned to the task said this about the translation process: "When I translated the Bible into Diangello, I also receive[d] blessings from reading. When we come [to check] our work, I learn many things. Our consultants explain those verses, and that really enriches my knowledge of the Bible. It helps me in my ministry. It is almost like attending Bible school."

After the completion and printing of the New Testament translation in 1995, the dedication service began on the evening of May 14 and continued through the entire next day. In an expression of joy and gratitude, the people participated in a nonstop public reading of the New Testament that took over 36 hours.

Translation work on the Diangello Old Testament began immediately. The translation team completed it in 2014, and the dedication ceremony concluded with another public reading. This time, the reading of the entire Bible took almost a full week to finish. It clearly demonstrated the Diangello believers' continued enthusiasm for their ability to read and understand the Word of God in their language.

In 2019, Bibles International was invited to participate in the Diangello Gospel Centenary. The Diangello people shared that two-thirds of the 5,000 Bible copies printed had been distributed in only five years. It had become “the” Diangello Bible of choice and was easy for everyone to understand. When a few linguistic issues were found in the Bible translation, Bibles International then adopted the Diangello Bible revision project in 2023.