Our approach
Evidence before assertion.
A clearer understanding of Scripture access begins with knowing where information comes from — and where it stops.
Unknown is information.
Bible4All brings language records and Scripture observations together, while keeping their sources traceable. The Scripture collection is currently a small development sample. It is not a worldwide census of Bible availability.
No record here does not mean no Scripture exists. A translation may exist, a project may be active, or evidence may simply not have reached Bible4All yet.
Three separate questions
- Existence: what evidence supports a reported resource?
- Coverage: which books or portions does it contain?
- Permission: on what basis could its text be shared?
A supported answer to one question does not answer the others. Unknown means we lack a sufficient answer. Disputed means conflicting evidence or a disputed assessment must be resolved.
Records are not approvals
A catalog candidate is a stored resource identity, not a verified translation designation. Evidence under review is a separate source observation. Even a successful source extraction only establishes what was extracted; it does not independently verify what the source reports.
Multiple listings may repeat the same original source. Independent corroboration requires checking that distinction. Confidence belongs to a particular assessment, never to an entire language or community.
A census of languages, not Scripture.
Public browsing currently includes supported members of Bible4All’s latest completed Glottolog language census. Counts are calculated from these records, including languages without ISO codes. They are not a claim about the exact number of languages in the world.
Language names, identifiers, statuses and location points are adapted from Glottolog CLDF 5.3 under CC BY 4.0. Bible4All selects language-level entries under its census policy, normalizes the data and preserves existing canonical corrections. Inclusion does not grant independent identity verification.
The census includes spoken and sign languages, historical or extinct varieties, and constructed languages. It excludes family and dialect entries and certain administrative categories. A language status of unknown is deliberate; other source categories do not automatically establish whether a language is active.
Coordinates are reference points, not geographic boundaries or population measurements. The map uses one neutral marker style and only records with usable coordinates.
Available online is not permission to share.
A publicly visible Bible may still have restrictions on copying or modification. Bible4All does not infer open Scripture from a download link, a provider listing or the presence of a license name.
Wikidata’s structured metadata can be reused under CC0. Where this basis is documented in the retained evidence, we show a limited selection with item identifiers and retrieval context. CC0 metadata does not grant rights to the Scripture text described by that metadata.
Some other provider details remain withheld because their public reuse basis has not been established. Bible4All’s derived assessment labels may still be shown. No Scripture text is distributed by this explorer.
Better information, shared purpose.
Our long-term aim is to understand Scripture access accurately, recognize existing work and support communities addressing verified needs. The present evidence does not yet establish those needs globally.
Automation can gather and compare evidence. Human and community authority cannot be supplied by a machine’s confidence. For translation work: AI drafts. Humans translate. Communities decide.