The Efik language occupies a distinguished place in Nigerian linguistic and religious history. It is widely recognized as the first Nigerian language to develop a standardized written orthography and the first to have a complete Bible translation, published in 1868. This achievement was the result of a unique collaboration between European missionaries especially from…
Rev. John Christopher Taylor occupies a unique place in Nigerian Christian and cultural history. Often called the “Apostle of Igboland,” Taylor played a major role in bringing Christianity and Western-style formal education to parts of southeastern Nigeria. Born to Igbo-descended ex-slaves in Sierra Leone, he returned to West Africa as part of the mid-19th-century missionary…
The Igbo Bible has a long and rich history, with many Igbo people contributing to its translation. However, there is a common myth that Ajayi Crowther, a Yoruba man, was the only person who translated it. This is not true because it ignores the hard work of others, especially Igbo ex-slaves like Rev. John Christopher…