Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1964, Page 253

Kring J. H. Schrdters omsetjing av MatteusÆvangeliet, 1823 261
om Schroter har dá vore merkte av det syn som vart
rádande i slutten av hundreáret, som m.a. kravde nasjonalt
sjolvstyre i málvegen, og som báde hadde málreising og
málreinsing pá saklista.
Schróter var den fyrste, og han vart dá mykje godt
stáande áleine, i alle fall slik dette ter utetter, fordi dei
som han rádfórte seg med, ikkje har late hóyra frá seg i
trykt skrift. Han hadde ingen á læra av, og fá som kunne
bera han fram.
Av mange grunnar vil det vere ynskjeleg á fá i stand
vitskaplege utgáver av skriftene hans, breva medrekna.
Fyrst dá vil ein kunne dóma tryggare om mannen og verket
hans. Sameleis som alle andre har Schróter krav pá á bli
verdsett ut frá sine eigne fóresetnader. Han er ein mang»
slungen mann, som er vel verd eit studium.
SUMMARY
ln 1823 Johan Henrik Schroter published his translation into Faroese
of The Gospel of St. Matthew. Schróter was the first one who tried to
establish a Faroese orthography for public use (e. g. in print), an under-
taking which involved a great many problems. Moreover the popu-
lation disliked the use of their own vernacular in The Holy Scrip-
tures, and the linguists (e g. P. A. Munch, Ivar Aasen and N. M. Peter-
sen) disliked the ortophone spelling which, according to their theories,
represented a mixture of linguistic structures.
The translation was carried out 1815—23. The original MS was pro-
vided with a preface and linguistic remarks, none of which were in-
cluded in the printed edition. From this preface (printed in this paper)
and the remarks (from which characteristic examples are given) we learn
a great deal about Schroter’s methods and reasons for his choice of
words and phrases.
Some characteristic features of Schróter’s translation are referred and
discussed. The tendency is that loanwords and more literary expressi-
ons are to be found in the abstract and specific religious parts of the
text. The genuine Farose words and phrases (of which some were
characterized as oldfashioned and obsolete) are to be found in the
narration and in parts where concrete situations and objects are des-
cribed.