ShekgalagariBible Translation
The New Testament launches in 2024 and plans for the Old Testament will soon be underway. Help keep the momentum going!
Bible Translation
Country
- Botswana
Region
- Southern Africa
Language Population
78,800
New Testament in hand, focus shifts to Full Bible
The New Testament is now published and access is expanding to the 200,000 Shekgalagari speakers in Botswana and Namibia.
Strong local vision and leadership throughout the years resulted in a community eager to participate in language translation and development. The completed New Testament will enhance worship and strengthen faith as Shekgalagari speakers read and hear God’s Word in the language they understand best.
Focus of the language community now turns to the Old Testament and bring the entirety of God’s Word to Shekgalagari speakers.
Empowering Local Leaders
We believe that every community should have the chance to read the Bible in the language they know best. Your financial gifts and prayers help leaders in Botswana further translation of the Bible into the Shekgalagari language.
Program Goals
- Visit communities where Shekgalagari is widely spoken in an attempt to connect those groups to each other in a more cohesive way.
- Travel to Shekgalagari speaking communities to provide the New Testament for purchase and to connect with the speakers in those areas.
- Make a plan for Old Testament translation, evaluating the need for more translation staff.
Program Plan
Step 1
Strengthen bonds between neighboring Shekgalagari-speaking groups.
Step 2
Provide the published New Testament to all groups.
Step 3
Build a plan for the Old Testament translation work.
Meet the Local Team
team members
Tshwaraganang Tjetjoo
Project Coordinator
Leading project work and guiding project tasks, managing project finances
Pontsho Mosweu
Community Connection Liasion
Managing community connections and relationships, developing network of Bakgalagari
Rev. Carl and Kelsey Grulke
Rev. Carl and Kelsey Grulke have been missionaries with Lutheran Bible Translators since 2016. They share a love for the Word of God and helping it come alive in hearts of those who hear. Carl loves exploring the local languages and uncovering how they can reflect who God is. Kelsey enjoys helping others understand God’s story in new ways through technology, the arts, and other innovative methods.
Partner Organizations
Honoring the Language
A marker of this Bantu language is that the prefixes change with the noun class. “She” marks a language. “Ba” represents the people.
People live in the Kalagari (spelled Kalahari in English) Desert. Bakgalagari means “People of the Kalagari”.
The majority of Shekgalagari speakers are subsistence farmers – including farming cattle, goats, and chickens. The language community is widely spread across the southwest region of Botswana and into Namibia.
