Around 35.5 million Bibles last year were distributed last year, according to stats from the United Bible Societies (UBS). Last week The German Bible Society announced that there were around three million more copies than in 2021, citing statistics from UBS). After a sharp decline at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, an upward trend continued, according to a report in PRO | Das christliche Medienmagazin.
Brazil was the top country for Bible distribution in 2022, with 4.8 million copies; in second place, the United States with 2.6 million and India with 2.5 million copies. The language with the most Bibles distributed was Spanish, (5.8 million), followed by English (5.4 million) and Portuguese (4.9 million). About 1.8 million Bibles in In Mandarin were distributed. More than a quarter of the Bibles in circulation have been downloaded online.
The distribution of full Bibles, New Testaments, Bible Books and Scripture portions totalled 165 million, reaching pre-Covid levels. Bibles from other sources push this total higher each year.
According to the British and Foreign Bible Society, Bible Society teams worldwide completed Scripture translations in 81 languages used by 723 million people in 2022, despite global disruptions caused by Covid, economic instability and the war in Ukraine. They also report that “57 language groups – 100 million people- from Brazil to Bangladesh – received first Scripture translations. This included 14 first full Bible translations.
“Five million Ethiopians, who speak Arsi Oromo, and 6,000 Indonesians on the island of Tagulandang who speak Sangirese, are just two examples of communities who can now access the Bible in their heart language.
“New or revised translations were completed in another 25 languages used by more than 623 million people. These are crucial as languages change over time and Scripture translations can become outdated and hard to understand, particularly for younger generations.”
You can support Bible translation and distribution through Bible Society Australia.
Image: Bible distribution in Kenya Credit: UBS