Greetings!

EasyEnglish Bible and Commentaries, courtesy of Wycliffe Associates (UK) (www.easyenglish.info/), were uploaded today (6 May 2014). Here are notes from Wycliffe Associates (UK) website:

1. EasyEnglish Bible Translation
• This series is a very simple translation of the Bible (not word for word) for people who are starting to learn English. It can also help mother-tongue Bible translators who are translating the Bible into their own language. It is written in Level A EasyEnglish (1200 words) except for the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles which are in Level B EasyEnglish (2800 word vocabulary).
• The idea of these materials is to help Second Language English speakers. We want them to help people who speak less English. You should use them together with any other standard English translations or commentaries that you have available. We do not intend that you should use our version alone. You should not use it as your only start for a new translation into another language.
2. EasyEnglish Commentaries
• This is a series of Bible Commentaries for pastors, elders and Bible Study leaders in the developing world or for people who speak English as a second language. They are written in Level B EasyEnglish (2800 word vocabulary) unless it says otherwise.
• The idea of these materials is to help Second Language English speakers. We want them to help people who speak less English. You should use them together with any other standard English translations or commentaries that you have available. We do not intend that you should use our version alone. You should not use it as your only start for a new translation into another language.

What is EasyEnglish?

MissionAssist have spent a number of years researching simplified forms of English. As a result, we have developed our own form of simplified English, which we call EasyEnglish. We have produced a writers' manual, a lexicon, a biblical glossary and a computer program to help us produce EasyEnglish materials to a consistent standard.

The applications of this are enormous, including Bible Commentaries for the developing world, translations into EasyEnglish of materials for Christian societies and missions, instruction manuals for software and computer Help screens. There are estimated to be a billion people in the world who are able to read EasyEnglish.

EasyEnglish Vocabulary

EasyEnglish has two levels of vocabulary, known as A and B.

• Level A (very easy) has about 1200 words. It is suitable for people who are learning English as a foreign language.
• Level B (easy) has about 2800 words. It is suitable for people who speak English as a second or foreign language. It is about the same standard as the Cambridge First Certificate in English, which is a widely recognised standard throughout the world.

EasyEnglish Grammar

EasyEnglish is a formally defined subset of ordinary English. It uses ordinary English words (but only some of them!) and standard English grammar (but only some of it!). EasyEnglish is therefore perfectly good standard English, but because the words and grammar are restricted it is much easier to read than ordinary English.

The rules that our writers follow include:

• Short sentences
• Only one topic per paragraph
• No passive verbs
• No split infinitives
• No idioms
• No rhetorical questions
• No ambiguous pronouns
• Not more than two clauses per sentence
• Not more than two prepositional phrases per sentence

The EasyEnglish Writing Team

We have a team of people who are involved in producing EasyEnglish materials. This team includes:

• Writers - People who write original material in EasyEnglish.
• Translators - People who translate already existing material into EasyEnglish.
• Linguistic Checkers - People who check the linguistic consistency of the work. Our linguistic checkers normally have a degree in Linguistics or English (or similar) and a TEFL qualification. Experience of the developing world is also useful.
• Theological Checkers - People who check the theological accuracy of the work. Our theological checkers need a degree in theology (or a similar qualification).
• Editors - People who check drafts and final output for accuracy and consistency.

You may download these Bible and Commentary by going to the Download page:

• Download Bibles
• Download Commentaries

Alternatively, you can also download them directly via MySword running in your Android device. Just go to Menu->More->Download modules. Then select the module type, language (if any), then the modules, and start downloading.

Enjoy reading God's Word!