James Benjamin McCullagh (1854–1921) was an Anglican missionary in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

; he worked under the supervision of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

, a Protestant body with an evangelical program and practices. McCullagh is notable for his linguistic work in translating portions of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

and the

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

into the

Nisga'a language Nisga’a (also Nass, Nisgha, Nisg̱a’a, Nishka, Niska, Nishga, Nisqa’a) is a Tsimshianic language of the Nisga'a people of northwestern British Columbia. Nisga'a people, however, dislike the term ''Tshimshianic'' as they feel that it gives p ...

. McCullagh was ordained to the diaconate and priesthood in 1890 by the Bishop of Caledonia. His missionary and educational work was centered on the mission village of Aiyansh,

Bibliography

''A Nishg' a Version of Portions of the Book of Common Prayer''
(London, 1890) * ''The Indian Potlatch: The Substance of a Paper read before C.M.S. Annual Conference at Metlakatla, B.C., 1899'' * ''Ignis: A Parable of the Great Lava Plain in the valley of "Eternal Bloom", Naas River, British Columbia'' (Aiyansh, c. 1918) * ''Red Indians I Have Known'' (London, c. 1919)

External links

Niš'ga Primer
1897

primer by McCullagh
''McCullagh of Aiyansh''
1923 biography by J. W. W. Moeran
BC Author Bank articleMcCullagh archives in British Columbia
1854 births 1921 deaths Anglican missionaries in Canada Canadian Anglican priests English Anglican missionaries Pre-Confederation British Columbia people Linguists from Canada Writers from British Columbia Missionary linguists {{Canada-clergy-stub