Haitian Creole Bible

• Location: Haiti
• New Testament Completion Date: 2002, 2007, 2016
• Bible Completion Target Date: 2035

While the vast majority of the Haitian Creole-speaking people reside on the western third of the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, between Puerto Rico and Cuba, there are more than 13 million Haitian Creole speakers worldwide. The majority of the Haitians profess Christianity, but fewer than 18% claim to be evangelical. Although Haiti recognizes two official languages, French and Haitian Creole, more Haitians speak and understand Creole than they do French. The Haitian Creole language obtained legal and educational status in 1961, resulting in a 61% literacy rate among Haitian adults.

Since Baptist Mid-Missions began church planting in Haiti in the early 1930s, Bible-believing churches among the Haitian people have significantly increased in number. About 10% of evangelical churches in Haiti classify as Baptist, but a general lack of understanding of the Bible which is caused by the limitations of the available Scripture translations, has hindered church growth. Although the Haitian believers have access to a French Bible, the majority of them cannot understand it, and existing Creole translations have significant inherent weaknesses.

Bibles International adopted the Haitian Creole New Testament project in 1990 with Dr. Hantz Bernard as the main translator and Ross Hodsdon as the BI consultant for the project. Spiritual opposition to this project manifested itself in various ways, including two car accidents involving the translator and consultants. However, in 2002, BI published its first Haitian Creole New Testament and printed 13,000 copies. After revising this translation, the translation committee printed an additional 35,000 copies in 2007. Another publication of the New Testament, with the inclusion of Psalms and Proverbs, produced 15,000 more copies in 2016. This New Testament continues to be reprinted by other Christian ministries today.

While the Haitian believers are thankful for a faithful New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs in their language, they want to have the Old Testament translated into their Creole language as well. BI adopted the Haitian Creole Bible project in 2008, with eight years passing before finding a translator who could translate the Old Testament. Now, with Dr. Daniel Telfort as the main translator for this project working alongside BI consultants, the translation work continues on the Haitian Creole Bible. The book of Genesis was published in 2020, followed by Ruth and Jonah in 2023.

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