The Union Version and the Sigao Bible: An Analysis and Comparison of Two Chinese Bibles

The importance of the Mandarin Union Version for the Protestant Churches in China can be compared to the relevance acquired by the Sigao Shengjing for Chinese speaking Catholics soon after its publication. The 1919 Union Version was the result of a collaboration among Protestants after a century of separation and many lone translations, while the 1968 Sigao Bible was the first version of the Bible in Chinese completed by Catholics.(1) This translation project was undertaken in 1935 by the Franciscan missionary Gabriele Allegra. The purpose of this paper is to analyze and compare these two noteworthy versions. A brief introduction will present the translation process of the Union Version and of the Sigao Bible. Subsequently, some handwritten documents of Gabriele Allegra will be analyzed, to outline his attitude towards the missionary activity and the translations of the Protestants. Thereafter, some passages from the Gospel of John in the two versions will be examined and compared to analyze the features of the two translations.