This article is from Christianity Knowledge Base with material from Wikipedia
| King James Version | |
|---|---|
 The title page to the 1611 first edition of the Authorized Version Bible by Cornelius Boel shows the Apostles Peter and Paul seated centrally at the top. Moses and Aaron flank the central text. In the four corners sit Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, authors of the four gospels, with their symbolic animals. The rest of the Apostles stand at the top. THE HOLY BIBLE, Conteyning the Old Teſtament, AND THE NEW: Newly Tranſlated out of the Originall tongues: & with the former Tranſlations diligently compared and reuiſed, by his Maiesties speciall Comandement. Appointed to be read in Churches. Imprinted at London by Robert Barker, Printer to the Kings moſt Excellent Maiestie. ANNO DOM. 1611 . | |
| Full name: | Authorized Version or King James |
| Abbreviation: | KJV or AV |
| Complete Bible published: | 1611 |
| Textual Basis: | NT: Textus Receptus, similar to the Byzantine text-type; some readings derived from the Vulgate. OT: Masoretic Text with Septuagint influence. Apocrypha: Septuagint with Vulgate influence. |
| Reading Level: | US and Canada Grade 12, US and Canada Grade 8-10 |
| Copyright status: | Public domain due to age, publication restrictions until 2039 in the United Kingdom. |
The King James Version or KJV, which is known in Britain as the Authorised Version, is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1611 by scholars of the Church of England. Considered a masterwork of medieval scholarship, the KJV has become the best selling book in the history of the world and, perhaps more than any other book or Bible translation, helped form modern Western civilization. The translation remains under perpetual crown copyright in the United Kingdom, but is in the public domain elsewhere.
Attributes of the KJV[]
The King James Version is translated from the Received Text, also known as the Textus Receptus. The version used by the translators was the 1550 edition of Stephanus. The Received Text is very similar to the Majority Text and Byzantine text type. The book of Revelation has differences from these texts as much of it was taken from the Latin Vulgate.
Copyright status[]
In most of the world the King James Version (Authorized Version) has passed out of copyright and is freely reproduced. This is not the case in the United Kingdom where the rights to the King James Version (Authorized Version) are held by the British Crown under perpetual Crown copyright. Publishers are licensed to reproduce the King James Version (Authorized Version) under letters patent. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the letters patent are held by the Queen's Printer, and in Scotland by the Scottish Bible Board. The office of Queen's Printer has been associated with the right to reproduce the Bible for centuries, the earliest known reference coming in 1577. In the 18th century all surviving interests in the monopoly were bought out by John Baskett. The Baskett rights descended through a number of printers and, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the Queen's Printer is now Cambridge University Press, who inherited the right when they took over the firm of Eyre & Spottiswoode, Ltd. in 1990.
Other royal charters of similar antiquity grant Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press the right to produce the King James Version (Authorized Version) independently of the Queen's Printer. In Scotland the King James Version (Authorized Version) is published by Collins under licence from the Scottish Bible Board. The terms of the letters patent prohibit any other than the holders, or those authorized by the holders, from printing, publishing or importing the King James Version (Authorized Version) into the United Kingdom. The protection that the King James Version (Authorized Version), and also the Book of Common Prayer, enjoy is the last remnant of the time when the Crown held a monopoly over all printing and publishing in the United Kingdom.
See also[]
- Category:Bible content
- King James only movement
External links[]
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