HAARLEM, Netherlands, February 25, 2005 — Spectacular sales of the new Dutch Bible translation, De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling, have made it the second bestselling book in the Netherlands during 2004.
Strictly speaking, the new translation is sold in a number of different editions, not as a single book. Even so, the bestselling of these is the standard edition, with its sales alone putting the Bible in third position. Other editions among the bestsellers are a 'home and church Bible' and an edition typeset in a single column and with no verse numbers, for readers interested in the Bible as literature. These ended the year in 14th and 20th positions, respectively, while combined sales of the three put the Bible in second place.
Ironically, the book in the top spot is The Da Vinci Code, a murder mystery based around the notion that Jesus was a mortal man with a line of descent to the present day. But whereas The Da Vinci Code has been on sale in the Netherlands since June, the new Bible translation was only published at the end of October.
Commenting on the success of the new translation, Haaije Feenstra, General Secretary of the Netherlands Bible Society, said, "These sales figures show - once again - that the Bible is the world's bestseller. We were impressed: it shows the relevance of the Bible even in a secularised Netherlands."
Produced by the Netherlands Bible Society and the Flanders Bible Society, in cooperation with the Roman Catholic Bible Foundation and the Flemish Bible Foundation, De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling is the first official translation to be published since 1951 and has been acclaimed for giving Scripture "a modern feel".
De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling was launched simultaneously in Flanders and the Netherlands, with marketing by both Bible Societies designed to position it as a book not just for churchgoers but for the public at large.
"By positioning the Bible as more than a religious text, we have created a sense of freedom that has led to a warm welcome for the new Bible translation and spectacular sales figures," said the Netherlands Bible Society in a statement.
As well as becoming a bestseller, the new translation has gained a great deal of coverage in newspapers, magazines, and academic periodicals. The magazine Onze Taal ('Our Language'), recognized its importance for the Dutch-speaking region, lauding its publication as "the most important literary and linguistic event of the year".
"This level of media interest in the Bible - not least from the secular press - has never been seen in Flanders," said Pascal Lauwaert, Director of the Flanders Bible Society.
The Bible Societies are not only reaching out to the region through stores and trade shows, however. Employees and volunteers of the Netherlands Bible Society presented special copies of the Bible to some 2,500 churches across the country. An official presentation was also made to Queen Beatrix on October 27th at the De Doelen concert hall in Rotterdam.
Dutch is spoken by around 22 million people in Europe, 16 million in the Netherlands and six million in Flanders, where it is also informally called Flemish. It is an official language of both the Netherlands and Belgium. Other countries where Dutch is an official language are Suriname, the Netherlands Antilles, South Africa and Namibia.
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