Page 19 - 2020 SoMJ Vol 73 No 2_Neat

10 The Society of Malaŵi Journal

conference. One of the issues covered by the Nyasaland United Missionary
Conference, which ran concurrently with the translation committee in October
1900, was the subject of vernacular literature and the impact of translation on
mission work. D. McMinn, representing LM, reiterated the point that the
multitude of languages was the greatest hindrance to mission work in Africa, and
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emphasized the need for a common language.
However, he cautioned that the process of replacing the multitude of
languages with one language must be gradual. He reasoned that it would be a
‘mistake to try to force anyone language on a number of peoples too quickly’, and
expressed doubts as to whether the translation ‘would be the quickest and surest
49
way to get a useful common language’. This shows that even in 1900 and in spite
of the general consensus that languages be homogenized, missionaries could not
predict with absolute certainty when these select languages would become lingua
franca. In fact, McMinn stated that the ‘lingua franca would be attained by a
natural process, which would ensure a rich and noble language, while at the same
time the bulk of the people of the different tribes would have, at least, the
opportunity for salvation through Christ.’
50
Thus, ethnic unity, salvation and language were closely related agendas of
the missions. Most importantly, this shows that missionaries believed that,
through time and conversion, a lingua franca would naturally spread in the
Protectorate. It is also important to note that the language arising out of
interactions between Christianity and vernacular language would be a ‘rich and
noble language’, highlighting the belief that that the vernacular languages were
inadequate. Most certainly, missionaries believed that the association with
Europeans and reducing the languages into its written forms would ‘improve’ the
vernacular languages and make them suitable for mission work. Despite this,
missionaries used the same inadequate vernacular languages in preaching and
teaching.
Further, McMinn’s argument shows that the translation projects were at once
ethnically oriented (in the sense that missionaries promoted languages of specific
ethnic groups) and geared at the creation of a national language (with the mission
goal of creating a lingua franca). With regard to the latter, the aim was to unite
the various ethnic groups in colonial Malawi through common languages selected
during Bible translations. This positioned Tumbuka, Nyanja and Yao as the main
languages in colonial Malawi. The languages gained widespread usage due to
their usage in preaching and teaching in churches and schools. However, mission
documents are silent on missionaries’ strategies and practices vis-à-vis the use of

48 Livingstonia Manuscripts, “The Nyasaland United Missionary Conference Report of
the Meeting Held at the Livingstonia Missionary Institution.,” 41.
49 Livingstonia Manuscripts, 41.
50 Livingstonia Manuscripts, 42.