Linguistic Strategies in the Translation/Transliteration of the Names of Biblical Books into Igbo and Yoruba

As discoveries are made, new words are needed to capture and describe the various new realities. These new words and ideas need to be either translated or transliterated into other languages for the benefit of the users of those languages. Consequently, strategies used successfully for previous translations and transliterations need to be studied, understood, and defined in order to maintain consistency in subsequent translations. It is from this perspective that this work seeks to unveil the translation and transliteration strategies employed in expressing the names of the sixty-six books of the Protestant Bible in Igbo and Yoruba. Drawing on the data sourced from Igbo and Yoruba Bibles, this study shows that literal translation, direct translations, and borrowing were used. The borrowed words were adapted into the two indigenous languages using sound substitution, sound insertion, or approximation of Igbo/Yoruba phonetic symbols to English orthography.