Bible translations in Norway date back to the late 13th century. Since the first spread of Christianity in Norway, numerous translations of the Bible have been published. Translations have appeared in several of the official languages that Norway has had throughout its history, including editions in Old Norse, Danish, and both current standard forms Nynorsk and Bokmål.
Old Norwegian "Stjórn" At the end of the 13th century, some parts of the Old Testament were translated into Old Norse. This rendering of the text became known as "Stjórn", meaning "Government," because it was most likely done at the court of King Haakon V. It serves as more of a paraphrase of the Bible than as a strict translation.
The text was published in Norway by C. R. Unger in 1862, and the edition influenced later translations of the Bible into Norwegian. Only two manuscripts of the text are known today, neither in Old Norse, but rather having been themselves translated into the Icelandic.
Danish editions 1524-1873
In 1524, the exiled King Christian II of Denmark-Norway ordered the publication of the first Danish-language translation of the New Testament. It was given a full title which can be translated as "This is the New Testament in Danish directly from the Latin version," and is often referred to today as the New Testament of King Christian II. The inspiration to publish this translation came from the king's visit to Wittenberg, Germany, a focal point of the Protestant Reformation. The translation work was done by Christiern Winter, Hans Mikkelsen, and Henrik Smith, while Melchior Lotter financed the printing. The translation was based on Erasmus of Rotterdam's Latin Bible translation of 1516 for the Gospels and Acts of the Apostles, and on Martin Luther's German New Testament for the rest.
After publication, the book was subject to harsh criticism. Its Danish was not very fluent, and there was an attack in the preface on King Frederick I (who had previously deposed King Christian II). There was also a petition against the Catholic Church in Denmark, which led to the eventual banning of this translation in Denmark. Only about 40 copies are known to exist today.
Christiern Pedersen's New Testament was a complete translation into Danish, published in Antwerp in 1529. Pedersen used the Vulgate as a starting point, but was also inspired by Luther's German translation of the New Testament. Pedersen was a reformist Catholic who considered it important for the translation to be in the vernacular; the language used was quite free and accessible, close to everyday vernacular. A revised edition was published in 1531.
Christian III's Bible and versions based on this
Christian III's Bible was the first full Danish-language Bible translation, published in 1550. It was commissioned by King Christian III. A commission of theologians compiled this first 1550 edition, largely based on Luther's complete German-language translation of the Bible published five years earlier in 1545. It was also influenced by: Luther's Low German translation of 1534; the Swedish Bible translation named after Gustav Vasa; Pedersen's translations of the New Testament (1529), Psalms (1531) and Genesis (1535); and on two complete, unpublished translations of the Bible, one by Pedersen, and one by Hans Tausen from 1543. A combined emphasis on fluency of the language employed and a translation close to the original texts yielded a result which is considered very good. The Bible was illustrated, and also contained some cross-references. The price of the book was 5 daler, equivalent in price to a good bull or thirty barrels of rye. About 3000 copies were printed, of which 96 came to Norway. The language used in this translation exhibited German influence, but because this book significantly improved access to the Biblical literature for everyday Danes and Norwegians, editions based on this became the dominant Bibles in Denmark and Norway for much of the Reformation era, earning the edition the common name, "The Reformation Bible."
A new edition of the New Testament was published in 1558. This was largely a reprinting of the 1550 edition, but also included Martin Luther's preface to the different texts and expanded the notes.