Oral Bible Translation Bibliography

Special Issues

• The Bible Translator 76, no. 1 (April 2025), “Quality Assurance in Oral Bible Translation.”
• Acta Theologica Supplementum 40 (2026), “Oral Bible Translation for Community Empowerment.”

Books and Articles

• Achtemeier, Paul J. 1990. “Omne Verbum Sonat: The New Testament and the Oral Environment of Late Western Antiquity.” Journal of Biblical Literature 109 (1): 3–27. https://doi.org/10.2307/3267326.
• Adams, B. Christopher. 2023. “Embodied Hermeneutics: Embodied Cognition as a Linguistic Foundation for Oral Bible Translation.” September. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.14813.38882.
• Adams, B. Christopher. 2025. “Embodied Hermeneutics: Oral Bible Translation and Embodied Cognition.” Journal of Language, Culture, and Religion 6 (1): 1–19. https://doi.org/10.64830/001c.144559.
• Awakde, Bayamy Tchande. 2025. “Community Participation in OBT Quality Assurance.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 23–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251323827.
• Baker, Nathan. 2025. “Heart Matters: Embodied Epistemology and the Goal of Oral Strategies in Animistic Contexts.” The Great Commission Baptist Journal of Missions 4 (2). https://serials.atla.com/gcbjm/article/view/3706.
• Ballarin, Hélène. 2023. « Un regard sur Oral Bible Translation Global Gathering 2023 : pistes de réflexion ». Journal of Translation 19 (1): 111–16. https://doi.org/10.54395/JOT-O4B6T.
• Ballarin-Ducasse, Hélène. 2015. “Developing an Oral Interpretation Translation Method.” Paper presented at the Bible Translation Conference 2015, Dallas, TX. Translated by Coleen Starwalt.
• Banda, Maxwell Chiwoko. 2024. “Oral Bible Translation as a Means of Enhancing Bible Engagement in Oral Communities: A Survey of Rural Congregations of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian, Nkhoma Synod, in Malawi.” The Bible Translator 75 (2): 245–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770241255594.
• Banda, Maxwell Chiwoko. 2026. “The Impact of Oral Bible Translation on Spiritual Formation in Malawi, with Special Focus on the Malokotela and Mihipiti Languages.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 50–68. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10836.
• Bandia, Paul F. 2015. “Introduction: Orality and Translation.” Translation Studies 8 (2): 125–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/14781700.2015.1023217.
• Barr, David L. 1986. “The Apocalypse of John as Oral Enactment.” Interpretation 40 (3): 243–256.
• Bartsch, Carla. 1997. “Oral Style, Written Style, and Bible Translation.” Notes on Translation 11 (3): 41–48.
• Boomershine, Thomas E. 1988. Story Journey: An Invitation to the Gospel as Storytelling. Nashville: Abingdon Press.
• Box, Harry. 2014. Don’t Throw the Book at Them: Communicating the Christian Message to People Who Don’t Read. William Carey Library.
• Brassington, Peter. 2023. “A Brief and Incomplete SE Focused Timeline of Oral Bible Translation.” Google Docs. Last modified 2025. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wp8v6hFi9_jWFb4MxWa6y0PcRZhE8C7Z6cXtqPw7UFU/edit.
• Broek, Jonathan van den. 2021. “Identifying the Oral Features in John 8:31–38 and Their Implications for Translation.” Journal of Language, Culture, and Religion 2 (1): 21–37.
• Brown, H. A. 1968. “Oral Literature and Bible Translating.” The Bible Translator 19 (1): 17–18. https://doi.org/10.1177/000608446801900104.
• Chiang, Samuel, and Avery T. Willis Jr., eds. 2010. Orality Breakouts: Using Heart Language to Transform Hearts. Hong Kong: International Orality Network / Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization.
• Chiang, Samuel, and Grant Lovejoy. 2013. Beyond Literate Western Models: Contextualizing Theological Education in Oral Contexts. Hong Kong: International Orality Network.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2020. “A Comparison of Listeners’ Responses to Two Comparative Biblical Texts Produced in the Southern Altai Language, One by Means of Written and the Other by Means of Oral Translation.” MA thesis, Johnson University. https://www.academia.edu/43312567/.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2022. “God as an Oral Communicator – a Study of Orality, Epic Tales, and Oral Bible Performances in Siberia.” In God and Language: Exploring the Role of Language in the Mission of God, edited by Michael Greed and Dawn Kruger. SIL International. http://leanpub.com/languageandthemissionofgod.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2023. “Oral Bible Translation and Its Role in the Future of Bible Translation.” The Bible Translator 74 (1): 5–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770231152271.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2025. Oral Bible Translation and Biblical Performance in Southern Siberia: A Design for a Performance-Based Oral Bible Translation in the Southern Altai Language. Wipf and Stock.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2026a. “Helping to Preserve Minority Languages of Muslim Communities in Russia through Oral Bible Translation.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 5–22. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10834.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2026b. “Response to Book Review.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 142–43. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10841.
• Cleaver, Bronwen. 2026c. “Trauma Healing through Oral Bible Translation Techniques and the Book of Ruth: Giving Women the Language, Model and Permission to Share Their Trauma.” Journal of Language, Culture, and Religion 7 (2): 63–76. https://doi.org/10.64830/001c.172059.
• Cleaver, Bronwen, and Justin Randolph. 2025. “Translating and Performing Psalm 133 Using Oral Bible Translation and Local Genres.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 73–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251315441.
• Culy, Martin M. 1993. “The Top-Down Approach to Translation.” Notes on Translation 7 (3): 28–51.
• Davis, Morgan. 2024. “Getting the Word of God to Oral Contexts.” Radical, August 1. https://radical.net/article/unreached-in-oral-contexts/.
• Dickie, June F. 2017a. “Community Translation and Oral Performance of Some Praise Psalms within the Zulu Community.” The Bible Translator 68 (3): 253–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677017728564.
• Dickie, June F. 2017b. “Using Features of Indigenous Poetry and Music in the Oral Performance of Some Praise Psalms in Isizulu.” Journal of Translation 13 (1): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.54395/jot-v622c.
• Dickie, June F. 2018. “Communicating Biblical Text to Be Heard Well: Lessons from Orality and Performance Studies.” Neotestamentica 52 (2): 289–311.
• Dickie, June F. 2019. “The Importance of Literary Rhythm When Translating Psalms for Oral Performance (in Zulu).” The Bible Translator 70 (1): 64–81. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677018824771.
• Dickie, June F. 2023. “Translating Psalms from Orality to Performance: A Case Study with Psalm 3.” The Bible Translator 74 (2): 192–212. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770231167770.
• Doi, Christine. 2025. “Differences between Oral and Written English: A Case Study of Jonah.” MA thesis, Dallas International University. https://www.diu.edu/documents/theses/Doi_Christine-thesis.pdf.
• Draper, Jonathan A. 2002. “‘Less Literate Are Safer’: The Politics of Orality and Literacy in Biblical Interpretation.” Anglican Theological Review 84 (2): 303–18.
• Duling, Dennis C. 2011. “Memory, Collective Memory, Orality and the Gospels.” HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 67 (1): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v67i1.915.
• Esala, Nathan. 2015. “Ideology and Bible Translation: Can Biblical Performance Criticism Help?” The Bible Translator 66 (3): 216–29. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677015608614.
• Evans, A. Steven. 2010. “Matters of the Heart: Orality, Story and Cultural Transformation—the Critical Role of Storytelling in Affecting Worldview.” Missiology 38 (2): 185–99.
• Fedeli, Alba, Geoffrey Khan, and Johan Lundberg, eds. 2025. The Intertwined World of the Oral and Written Transmission of Sacred Traditions in the Middle East. Semitic Languages and Cultures 40. Open Book Publishers. https://doi.org/10.11647/obp.0498.
• Fehderau, Harold W. 1984. “Review: Oral Communication of the Scriptures. Insights from African Oral Art.” The Bible Translator 35 (1): 136–37. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009358403500107.
• Ferch, John G. 2024. “Relational Training for Oral Bible Translators.” In Oral Discipleship and Leadership Development. Western Academic.
• Finnegan, Ruth. 1970. Oral Tradition and the Verbal Arts: A Guide to Research Practices. Routledge.
• Finnegan, Ruth. 2012. Oral Literature in Africa. World Oral Literature Series 1. Open Book Publishers. https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0025.
• Finnegan, Ruth. 2025. Oral Poetry. World Oral Literature Series 14. Open Book Publishers. https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0428.
• Fitzgerald, Dan. 2015. “Mediating the Apocalypse: The Potential Semiotic Effects of Translating for Spoken and Sung Performance.” The Bible Translator 66 (3): 231–45. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677015608618.
• Foley, John Miles. 1988. The Theory of Oral Composition: History and Methodology. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
• Fotso Noumsi, Ervais. 2023. « Traduction orale de la Bible : sa prise de conscience ». Journal of Translation 19 (1): 87–110. https://doi.org/10.54395/JOT-H8RGT.
• Frost, Joshua C. 2025. “An Emotion Exegesis Method for Bible Translators Applied to Luke 24:1–12.” MA thesis, Dallas International University. https://www.diu.edu/documents/theses/Frost_Joshua-thesis.pdf.
• Frost, Joshua C. 2026. “Emotion Exegesis for Faithful Oral Bible Translation: Understanding the Emotional Dynamics of Scripture (Part 1).” OralityTalks 3 (1): 4–12. https://oralitytalks.net/emotion-exegesis-1/.
• Frost, Joshua C., Nikki Mustin, and Heather Beal. 2024. “Attaining Quality in Oral Bible Translation: A Guide to Effective Practice.” Journal of Translation 20 (2): 21–62. https://doi.org/10.54395/JOT-FMBOBT.
• Frost, Katie Hoogerheide. 2024. “Internalization: New Frontiers in Learning Scripture.” Journal of the Evangelical Missiological Society 4 (1): 63–80. https://journal-ems.org/index.php/home/article/view/108.
• Fry, Euan McG. 2004. “An Oral Approach to Translation.” The Bible Translator 55 (4): 506–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009430405500415.
• Gerhardsson, Birger. 1961. Memory and Manuscript: Oral Tradition and Written Transmission in Rabbinic Judaism and Early Christianity. Acta Seminarii Neotestamentici Upsaliensis 22. Lund: C.W.K. Gleerup.
• Green, Robin. 2007. “An Orality Strategy: Translating the Bible for Oral Communicators.” MA thesis, Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics.
• Green Ulibarri, Robin, and Swapna Alexander. 2025. “Developing Quality Assurance Practices in Moving Oral Translations to Print.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 122–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251322891.
• Gya, Daniel M. 2024. “Translating Biblical Poetry in the Context of African Oral Literature: The Case of the Rigwe Language of Central Nigeria.” PhD thesis, University of the Free State. [Translation of praise psalms using the features of indigenous praise songs]
• Gya, Daniel M. 2026. “Translating the Psalms: Considering Target Language Orality Strategies.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 23–49. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10835.
• Harmelink, Bryan. 2025. “The Role of Holistic Exegesis in Assuring Quality in Multimodal Translation.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 54–72. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251315643.
• Harvey, John D. 1998. Listening to the Text: Oral Patterning in Paul’s Letters. Evangelical Theological Society Studies. Grand Rapids: Baker Books.
• Harvey, John D. 2002. “Orality and Its Implications for Biblical Studies: Recapturing an Ancient Paradigm.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 45 (1): 99–109.
• Havelock, Eric A. 1986. The Muse Learns to Write: Reflections on Orality and Literacy from Antiquity to the Present. New Haven: Yale University Press.
• Hawkins, Benjamin. 2018. “‘God Speaks Our Language’: IMB’s First Translators Share Their Story in Exclusive Interview.” Pathway, May 7. https://mbcpathway.com/2018/05/07/god-speaks-our-language-imbs-first-translators-share-their-story-in-exclusive-interview/.
• Hearon, Holly E., and Philip Ruge-Jones, eds. 2008. The Bible in Ancient and Modern Media: Story and Performance. Biblical Performance Criticism 1. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.
• Houston, Tobias J. 2025. “Experimenting with Excellence: Quality Assessment in a Mozambican Oral Bible Translation and Transcription Project.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 35–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251315431.
• Houston, Tobias J. 2026. “Counting on Oral Bible Translation: Preserving Language and Culture through Numbers.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 69–87. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10837.
• Iverson, Kelly R. 2009. “Orality and the Gospels: A Survey of Recent Research.” Currents in Biblical Research 8 (1): 71–106. https://doi.org/10.1177/1476993X09341489.
• Jewell, Dawn Herzog. 2006. “Winning the Oral Majority: Mission Agencies Rethink Outreach to the World’s Non-Literate Masses.” Christianity Today 50 (3): 56–58.
• Kelber, Werner H. 1983. The Oral and the Written Gospel: The Hermeneutics of Speaking and Writing in the Synoptic Tradition, Mark, Paul, and Q. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.
• Komen, Erwin R., and Roman Kim. 2023. “Consultant-Checking Oral Bible Stories: A Case Study.” The Bible Translator 74 (1): 21–41. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770231154573.
• Lane, Adrian. 2006. “Training for the Sound of the Sermon: Orality and the Use of an Oral Text in Oral Format.” The Journal of the Evangelical Homiletics Society 6 (2): 77–94.
• Liriano, Fausto. 2024. “Orality and Memory in Bible Translation.” The Bible Translator 75 (2): 230–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770241261696.
• Liriano, Fausto. 2025. “Making Cognitive Insights on Memory Evident in OBT Projects.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 83–98. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251322697.
• Liriano, Fausto. 2026. “Book Review: Expanding Approaches to Bible Translation: Multimodal Perspectives.” The Bible Translator, March 21. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770261428366.
• Lord, Albert B. 1971. The Singer of Tales. Atheneum. https://chs.harvard.edu/now-available-online-the-singer-of-tales/.
• Loubser, J. A. 2013. Oral and Manuscript Culture in the Bible: Studies on the Media Texture of the New Testament—Explorative Hermeneutics. 2nd ed. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.
• Lovejoy, Grant, ed. 2005. Making Disciples of Oral Learners. Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization and International Orality Network. https://lausanne.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/LOP54_IG25.pdf.
• Lovejoy, Grant. 2012. “The Extent of Orality: 2012 Update.” Orality Journal 1 (1): 11–40. Hong Kong: International Orality Network.
• Macalinao, Romerlito C. 2023. “Oral Bible Translation: How Understanding the Neurosciences Helps, Part II.” Journal of Asian Mission 24 (1): 5–30. https://www.academia.edu/109902001/.
• Macalinao, Romerlito, Samuel Chiang, and Mark Overstreet. 2025. DOBS: Disciple-Making Oral Bible Strategy for Transformative Learning. Institutes for Orality Strategies.  
• Madinger, Charles. 2010. “Coming to Terms with Orality: A Holistic Model.” Missiology 38 (2): 201–13.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J. 2003. “A Functionalist Translation of the Morality Play Everyman into Southern Sotho.” MA thesis, University of the Free State.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J. 2011. “Re-Animating Orality: The Design for a New Translation of the Bible into Sesotho.” PhD thesis, University of the Free State.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J. 2024. “Orality in Translating Biblical Hebrew Proverbs in Sesotho.” Religions 15 (2). https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15020190.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J. 2026. “Introduction.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 1–4. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10830.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J., and Jacobus A. Naudé. 2004. “Re-Animating Orality: The Morality Play Everyman / Elkerlijk in Southern Sotho.” Journal for Semitics 13 (2): 159–85.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J., and Jacobus A. Naudé. 2008. “Towards the Design for a New Bible Translation in Sesotho.” Acta Theologica 28 (2): 1–32. https://doi.org/10.4314/actat.v28i2.48879.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J., Cynthia L. Miller-Naudé, and Jacobus A. Naudé. 2015. “Similarity and Alterity in Translating the Orality of the Old Testament in Oral Cultures.” Translation Studies 8 (2): 156–74. https://doi.org/10.1080/14781700.2014.992462.
• Makutoane, Tshokolo J., Jacobus A. Naudé, and Cynthia L. Miller-Naudé. 2026. “Quality in Oral Bible Translation and Performance.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 114–37. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10839.
• Mal Mazou, Oumarou. 2015. “Fulani Oral Literature and (Un)Translatability: The Case of Northern Cameroon Mbooku Poems.” TTR : Traduction, Terminologie, Rédaction 28 (1–2): 109–31. https://doi.org/10.7202/1041652ar.
• Mandalika, Lady Paula R. 2025. “Book Review: Rethinking Interreligious Dialogue: Orality, Collective Memory, and Christian–Muslim Engagements in Indonesia, Izak Y. M. Lattu.” The Bible Translator, November 12. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251378365.
• Marsh, Thomas H. 1937. “Some Problems of Oral Bible Reading.” Quarterly Journal of Speech 23 (3): 396. https://doi.org/10.1080/00335633709380287.
• Mathews, Jeanette. 2024. “Translation for Performance: Biblical Performance Criticism in Bible Translation.” Religions 15 (11): 1393. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111393.
• Maxey, James A. 2009a. From Orality to Orality: A New Paradigm for Contextual Translation of the Bible. Biblical Performance Criticism 2. Wipf and Stock.
• Maxey, James A. 2009b. “Performance Criticism and Its Implications for Bible Translation: Part I: Oral Performance and New Testament Studies.” The Bible Translator 60 (1): 37–49. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009350906000105.
• Maxey, James A. 2009c. “Performance Criticism and Its Implications for Bible Translation: Part II: Challenges and Experiences.” The Bible Translator 60 (3): 165–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009350906000305.
• Maxey, James A. 2010. “Bible Translation as Contextualization: The Role of Orality.” Missiology 38 (2): 173–83. https://doi.org/10.1177/009182961003800209.
• Maxey, James A. 2023. “Beyond Oral Bible Translation to Multi-Modal Translation.” Paper presented at the Bible Translation Conference 2023, Dallas, TX, October 13.
• Maxey, James A., ed. 2025. Expanding Approaches to Bible Translation: Multimodal Perspectives. Biblical Performance Criticism. Cascade Books.
• Maxey, James A., and Ernst R. Wendland, eds. 2012. Translating Scripture for Sound and Performance: New Directions in Biblical Studies. Biblical Performance Criticism 6. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.
• Meijer, Durk. 2017. “Exploring Oral Scripture Translation.” Engaging with the Eternal, November 30. https://engagingwiththeeternal.org/.
• Merz, Johannes. 2023. “Bible Transmediation in Theory and Practice.” The Bible Translator 74 (2): 213–30. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770221150806.
• Miller-Naudé, Cynthia L., and Jacobus A. Naudé. 2016. “The Intersection of Orality and Style in Biblical Hebrew: Metapragmatic Representations of Dialogue in Genesis 34.” In Doubling and Duplicating in the Book of Genesis: Literary and Stylistic Approaches to the Text, edited by E. R. Hayes and K. Vermuelen. Eisenbrauns. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781575064550-007.
• Miller-Naudé, Cynthia L., Tshokolo J. Makutoane, and Jacobus A. Naudé. 2026. “What Do We Actually Translate in Representing Orality in Oral Bible Translation and Performance?” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 88–113. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10838.
• Moon, W. Jay. 2010. “Discipling through the Eyes of Oral Learners.” Missiology 38 (2): 127–40.
• Naudé, Jacobus A. 2021. “Religious Texts and Oral Translation.” In Handbook of Translation Studies, Volume 5, edited by Yves Gambier and Luc Van Doorslaer. Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/hts.5.rel5.
• Naudé, Jacobus A., and Tshokolo J. Makutoane. 2006. “Reanimating Orality: The Case for a New Bible Translation in Southern Sotho.” Old Testament Essays 19 (2): 723–38.
• Naudé, Jacobus A., and Cynthia L. Miller-Naudé. 2016. “The Translation of Biblion and Biblos in the Light of Oral and Scribal Practice.” In die Skriflig 50 (3): a2060. https://doi.org/10.4102/ids.v50i3.2060.
• Naudé, Jacobus A., and Cynthia L. Miller-Naudé. 2018. “Alterity, Orality and Performance in Bible Translation.” In Key Cultural Texts in Translation, edited by Kirsten Malmkjaer, Adriana Şerbian, and Fransiska Louwagie. Translation Library. Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/btl.140.17nau.
• Naudé, Jacobus A., Cynthia L. Miller-Naudé, and Tshokolo J. Makutoane. 2017. “Bible Translation in Postcolony Africa: Reclaiming Humanness through Bible Translation Performance.” In Translation Studies Beyond the Postcolony, edited by Kobus Marais and Ilse Feinauer. Cambridge Scholars Press.
• Németh, Michał, and Anna Sulimowicz-Keruth. 2023. “The Emergence and Evolution of the West Karaim Bible Translation Tradition: Manuscripts, Translators, and Copyists.” Journal of the American Oriental Society 143 (3): 555–80. https://doi.org/10.7817/jaos.143.3.2023.ar022.
• Nida, Eugene A. n.d. “Orality in Translating.” Unpublished paper. https://www.academia.edu/35689072/Orality_in_Translating_by_EA_Nida.
• Niditch, Susan. 1996. Oral World and Written Word: Orality and Literacy in Ancient Israel. Westminster John Knox Press.
• Noss, Philip A. 1981. “The Oral Story and Bible Translation.” The Bible Translator 32 (3): 301–18. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009358103200301.
• Nyirenda, Gift. 2025. “Intersemiotic Bible Translation for an Orally Dominant Culture: The Case of Translating Lamentations into Nsenga.” PhD thesis, University of the Free State. [Translation of Lamentations using indigenous laments]
• Nyirenda, M. 2026. “Book Review: Oral Bible Translation and Biblical Performance in Southern Siberia.” Acta Theologica, Supplementum 40: 138–41. https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/10840.
• Oestreich, Bernhard. 2016. Performance Criticism of the Pauline Letters. Translated by Lindsay Elias and Brent Blum. Biblical Performance Criticism 14. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.
• Ong, Walter J. 1982. Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. Routledge.
• Perry, Peter S. 2019. “Biblical Performance Criticism: Survey and Prospects.” Religions 10 (2): 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020117.
• Peterson, Virginia, and Timothy Hatcher. 2026. “The Eight Conditions of OBT Scripture Engagement.” Scripture Engagement Research Initiative. https://www.scriptureimpact.org/scripture-engagement-research-initiative.
• Prior, Randall. 2011. “Orality: The Not-so-Silent Issue in Mission Theology.” International Bulletin of Missionary Research 35 (3): 143–47.
• Regt, Lénart J. de. 2013. “Bible Translation and Orality.” Journal of Translation 9 (1): 17–22. https://doi.org/10.54395/jot-45rpn.
• Rhoads, David M. 2010. “Biblical Performance Criticism.” Oral Tradition 25 (1): 157–198.
• Rhoads, David M., Joanna Dewey, and Donald Michie. 2012. Mark as Story: An Introduction to the Narrative of a Gospel. 3rd ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.
• Rodríguez, Rafael. 2013. “Oral Tradition and the New Testament.” Unpublished. https://bibleinterp.arizona.edu/sites/bibleinterp.arizona.edu/files/docs/Oral%20Tradition%20and%20the%20New%20Testament.pdf.
• Rodríguez, Rafael. 2014. Oral Tradition and the New Testament. Guides for the Perplexed. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark.
• Ruge-Jones, Philip. 2025. “Performing Faithfully: Mechanisms of Fidelity in Oral Bible Translation.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 135–47. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251320336.
• Sama, Abou, and Bronwen Cleaver. 2025. “Oral Language and the Mission of God.” In Language in the Mission of God, edited by Michael Greed. Publications in Scripture Engagement 2. SIL Global.
• Shiner, Whitney. 2003. Proclaiming the Gospel: First-Century Performance of Mark. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International.
• Stark, John E. 2022. “What Can We Expect from Oral Bible Translation?” In New and Old Horizons in the Orality Movement: Expanding the Firm Foundations. Pickwick.
• Steffen, Tom A. 1996. Reconnecting God’s Story to Ministry: Cross-cultural Storytelling at Home and Abroad. Pasadena, CA: Center for Organizational & Ministry Development.
• Steffen, Tom A. 2018. Worldview-Based Storying: The Integration of Symbol, Story, and Ritual in the Orality Movement. Pasadena, CA: Center for Oral Scriptures.
• Steffen, Tom A., and William Bjoraker. 2020. The Return of Oral Hermeneutics: As Good Today as It Was for the Hebrew Bible and First-Century Christianity. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock.
• Sundersingh, Julian. 2025. “Bible Translation for Oral Learners: For Print or Audio?” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 6–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251323172.
• Suzuki, Marcia. 2022. OBT Handbook: Oral Bible Translation with Heart, Mind, and Body. YWAM’s University of the Nations.
• Swarr, David, Ricki Gidoomal, and Psalm Araujo. 2017. Master Storyteller: God’s Oral Communication in the Bible and Hebrew Tradition. Richmond, VA: Center for Oral Scriptures.
• Thomas, Kenneth J. 1999. “Review: Listening to the Text: Oral Patterning in Paul’s Letters.” The Bible Translator 50 (3): 350–52. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009359905000308.
• Toler, Kris. 2020. “Internalization: A Key Ingredient in Achieving Naturalness in an Oral Translation.” https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.26137.24164.
• Toler, Kris, and Susan Toler. 2025. “Breaking the Literate Bias: Exploring the Sufficiency of Oral Bible Translation.” Paper presented at the Bible Translation Conference, Chiang Mai, Thailand, October 28. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/397060240_Breaking_the_Literate_Bias_Exploring_the_Sufficiency_of_Oral_Bible_Translation.
• Vansina, Jan. 1985. Oral Tradition as History. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press; London: James Currey.
• Veen, Ben F. van. 2024. Oral Performance and the Veil of Text: Detextification, Paul’s Letters, and the Test Case of Galatians 2–3. Pickwick.
• Voth, Esteban. 2005. “Orality and Writtenness in Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy: Its Effect on Translation as Communication in Latin America.” The Bible Translator 56 (3): 114–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009350505600302.
• Vries, Lourens de. 2000. “Bible Translation and Primary Orality.” The Bible Translator 51 (1): 101–14. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009350005100101.
• Vries, Lourens de. 2015. “Views of Orality and the Translation of the Bible.” Translation Studies 8 (2): 141–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/14781700.2014.992463.
• Wade, Martha L. 2022. “Taking the Potholes out of the Road: Prepublication Recording as a Means of Editing in Oral Preference Cultures.” The Bible Translator 73 (1): 26–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770221084993.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2008. Finding and Translating the Oral-Aural Elements in Written Language: The Case of the New Testament Epistles. Edwin Mellen Press. [This book examines the interlingual, cross-cultural transmission of the Bible in contemporary languages, underscoring the importance of employing a context-based methodology in translation.]
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2011. “Review: From Orality to Orality: A New Paradigm for Contextual Translation of the Bible.” The Bible Translator 62 (3): 199–204. https://doi.org/10.1177/026009351106200309.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2012. “Comparative Rhetorical Poetics, Orality, and Bible Translation: The Case of Jude.” In Translating the Bible into Sound and Performance: New Directions in Biblical Studies, edited by James A. Maxey and Ernst R. Wendland, 139–178. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2013a. “From Hebrew Acrostic to a Tonga Praise Poem: Proverbs 31:10–31.” In Lovely, Lively, Lyrics: Selected Studies in Biblical Hebrew Verse, 77–118. Dallas: SIL International.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2013b. Orality and the Scriptures: Composition, Translation, and Transmission. SIL International.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2020. “Re-Oralizing the Word for Empowerment: A Study of Re-Translation in Chichewa, with Special Reference to Psalm 124.” Conspectus (South African Theological Seminary), no. 30: 6–19.
• Wendland, Ernst R. 2025. Exploring the Dimensions of Orality in Scripture Texts. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/398084998_Exploring_the_Dimensions_of_Orality_in_Scripture_Texts.
• Winedt, Marlon. 2015a. “Chanting Down the New Jerusalem: Performing Revelation Calypso Style.” The Bible Translator 66 (3): 264–86. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677015608623.
• Winedt, Marlon. 2015b. « La rhétorique et l’oralité dans la lettre aux Éphésiens ». Le Sycomore 9 (2): 2–15.
• Winedt, Marlon. 2015c. “Translation as Performance and Engagement: Performing Philemon from a Modern Caribbean Perspective.” The Bible Translator 66 (1): 3–23. https://doi.org/10.1177/2051677015569718.
• Winedt, Marlon. 2025. “A Multimodal Approach to the Audio Recording of Written Scripture.” The Bible Translator 76 (1): 99–121. https://doi.org/10.1177/20516770251323577.
• Winger, Thomas M. 2003. “The Spoken Word: What’s up with Orality?” Concordia Journal 29 (2): 133–51.
• Wu, Jackson. 2019. “Biblical Theology for Oral Cultures in World Mission.” In World Mission: Theology, Strategy, and Current Issues, edited by Scott Callaham and Will Brooks, 269–292. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Tools, projects, and online resources

AI and OBT

• Acts2 — try it out
• AERO: AI Enhancements Responsive to Orality — try it out
• Audio Visual Translation Tool (AVTT)
• Faithbridge
• SIL AI & NLP

Software and tools

• Akuo: The Spoken Bible
• Audio Project Manager
• OBTHelps.org
• Render Helpdesk
• Tools.bible
• Well.bible

Events, organizations, initiatives, and projects

• Africa OBT Consultation
• Biblical Performance Criticism: Orality, Rhetoric, Memory, Delivery, Translation, Drama
• Church-Based Bible Translation
• FIA Project
• Multimodal Bible Translation EMDC group (login required)
• OBT Global Gathering - Lusaka, Zambia (May 19-22, 2026) (login required)
• Psalms that Sing

Media and explainers

• OBT 3 Minute Explainer
• “Orality, Print Culture and Biblical Interpretation.” Written, directed, filmed, and produced by Eugene Botha.
• Oral Bible Translation: An Introduction by Kris Toler (English with French subtitles).