THE BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER is one of the major works of English Literature. Since its introduction in the sixteenth century, it has had an enormous influence on everything written in English. It has gone through many of revisions, both in England and in the other countries of the Anglican Communion, but the original text is still comprehensible and relevant.

On this page, we list editions and translations to BCP texts available online.

Please note: A number of BCP versions (the US 1979 Prayer Book in Spanish, for example) or BCP equivalents (A New Zealand Prayer Book, for example) are under copyright and are therefore not available on the web.

GENERAL
The Book of Common Prayer
Chad Wohlers's comprehensive and superb site, with extensive links to other prayer books used within the Anglican Communion. The gold standard online resource for versions of the BCP that are not copyrighted.

The Book of Common Prayer among the Nations of the World
by William Muss-Arnolt (1913). An encyclopedic work on translations of the BCP. This digital edition of a very important work includes extensive hyperlinking to online versions of the translations and background documents.

Everyman's History of the Prayer Book, by Percy Dearmer.
This classic is now online, well formatted, and worth your time. Note the Family Tree of the Prayer Book.

National Public Radio (USA) on the Book of Common Prayer
Scott Simon offers a brief tribute to the BCP, tying it in to the American Thanksgiving holiday. (RealAudio, about three minutes long.)

A New History of the Book of Common Prayer
Charles Wohlers has digitized and annotated a 1910 edition of this classic historical commentary of the Book of Common Prayer by Francis Procter and Walter Howard Frere.

1549
Book of Common Prayer on Chad Wohlers's site (see above).

1559
1559 Book of Common Prayer
The full text of the 1559 Book of Common Prayer.

Closely related to the 1559
A comprehensive site on the remarkable and much-loved English poet, George Herbert. It includes an imaginative presentation of the 1559 Communion service, with links to Herbert poems at appropriate places. (Beware of the music.)

1662
1662 Book of Common Prayer
This site has the full text of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer along with a few supplemental links.

Wikisource
includes parts of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. As this project is incomplete, volunteers are likely welcome to add more of the text.

The 1662 BCP as engraved by Charles Sturt in 1717
'There is no actual printing of text —the entire book, including the text, was engraved by hand on 188 silver plates, which allowed extreme detail to be recorded. The entire project took three years to complete and was financed by the sale of advance subscriptions.' This masterpiece is well worth the time to download and examine; the pictorial engravings are lovely.

1928 (US)
1928 Book of Common Prayer (US)
This site contains Morning and Evening Prayer offices with links to the King James Version and the 1928 prayer book Psalter for both speed and ease of use. Abbreviated Daily Offices are also posted and linked, together with the Ordinal, Catechism, and so on.

www.commonprayer.org
'This Internet Edition of the Daily Offices includes versions of the Order for Morning and Evening Prayer which incorporate the Psalms, Scripture Lessons and Collect for the day based on the [US] 1928 Book of Common Prayer (1943 Lectionary) and the Authorized (King James) Bible into the text. The Occasional Offices from the [US] 1928 BCP commonly used with Morning and Evening Prayer, and privately, are included in their entirety, along with all of the various sections of the BCP useful as prayer supplements.'

1938 (Melanesia)
A Book of Common Prayer Authorised for Use in Churches and Chapels in the Diocese of Melanesia. AO editor Richard Mammana has digitized this significant early BCP revision, first published in 1938 under the direction of Bishop Walter Hubert Baddeley (1894-1960), seventh Bishop of Melanesia.

1938 (Ceylon)
The Ceylon Liturgy. 'This [English-language] liturgy was originally developed in 1933, revised in 1935, and finally authorized for general use in 1938. It is based both on the Church of England's abortive 1928 Liturgy, and on Eastern forms' for use in what is now Sri Lanka.

1960 (Ghana)
The 1960 Book of Common Prayer of the Anglican Church of Ghana. This BCP, available on Charles Wohlers' website, is a revision of the 1662 Prayer Book with slight modifications to reflect Ghanaian independence and local Anglo-Catholic practice.

1962 (Canada)
The Prayer Book Society of Canada has scanned and made available online the English text of the 1962 Canadian Book of Common Prayer. The French text is on Chad Wohlers's general BCP website.

1964 (Africa)
A Liturgy for Africa. 'The 1958 Lambeth Conference set out principles for liturgical changes for the Anglican Communion; this Liturgy for Africa was the first result of these new developments.'

1966 (Wales)
The Proposed Revised Service for Experimental Use. This publication of the Church in Wales is available online in Welsh and in English. A successor to this Liturgy was proposed in 1977 but failed to gain approval. A complete Book of Common Prayer for the Church in Wales was published in 1984.

1966 (US)
The New Liturgy 'published at the beginning of the process of revision that resulted in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church USA. While this liturgy retains traditional language, it incorporates a number of significant changes that distinguish it from its 1928 predecessor.'

1966 (New Zealand)
The Liturgy or Eucharist of the Church of the Province of New Zealand. This liturgy marks the first movement in revisions leading to the 1989 New Zealand Prayer Book.

1969 (Canada)
The Qu'Appelle Liturgy. This 'early part of the process of liturgical revision that culminated in the 1985 Book of Alternative Services was published during the tenure of the seventh Bishop of Qu'Appelle, George Clarence Fredrick Jackson (1907-1990, diocesan bishop 1960-1977).'

1970 (Papua New Guinea)
The Niugini Liturgy (1970). 'This diocesan eucharistic liturgy was published seven years before the formal inauguration of the Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea. Many local languages in this province have been used for Anglican liturgical translations, but English serves as a lingua franca. This is the first liturgy prepared for Papua New Guinea that departs from the traditional BCP order in several respects, anticipating changes adopted by some parts of the Anglican Communion later in the decade. The Niugini Liturgy was prepared and published by the Right Reverend David Hand (1918-2006), whose ministry in New Guinea spanned from 1946 to 2006.'

1976 (Papua New Guinea)
Occasional Offices, Church of the Province of Papua New Guinea (1976). This group of liturgies is a predecessor to the current official prayer book of the Church of the Province of Papua New Guinea, which was published in 1991 under the title Anglican Prayer Book.

1979 (US)
The (Online) Book of Common Prayer (US)
This is the official 1979 Book of Common Prayer including The Psalter or Psalms of David. Available as html.

Book of Common Prayer, Version 1979
'This version of the Book of Common Prayer is based on the 1979 Prayer Book, and hopes to provide you with more than just an electronic reproduction of the BCP. Wherever possible, the pages are dynamic — pulling Bible Passages from a database for insertion into the Daily Offices — and interwoven — linking various liturgies to proper prayers, anthems, and other pages or passages.' Provided by the International Communion of the Charismatic Episcopal Church.

Kindle BCP
The 1979 Book of Common Prayer of the US Episcopal Church is now available for purchase and use on Kindle, an electronic book device developed by Amazon.com.

undated (after 1981) (Mauritius)
Un ordre pour la célébration de la Sainte Eucharistie / An Order for the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist. Undated, in English and French, according to the use of the Diocese of Mauritius.

1985 and later (Canada)
Anglican Church of Canada Liturgical texts online. 'The Book of Alternative Services (BAS) and supplementary resources are now available for download. In 2009, the Council of General Synod authorized the online publication of these texts. The goals are to assist liturgy planners and to encourage future web-based work of liturgical text development.'

Other Languages

Ainu: The 1662 Book of Common Prayer in Ainu
Charles Wohlers has posted much of the Book of Common Prayer in Ainu, an extremely endangered language spoken in northern Japan.

Arosi: Translation of Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in the Bauro [sic Arosi] language
attributed to John Coleridge Patteson. Arosi is spoken on Makira (San Cristobal) in the southeastern Solomon Islands.

Binandere: Doregari Kotopu (1916)
This translation of the Holy Communion service from the 1662 BCP into Binandere is the work of Copland King (1868-1918) a botanist, zoologist, and linguist whose missionary life and significant translation activity are chronicled in Gilbert White's A Pioneer of Papua.

Bislama: Preabuk long Bislama (1979)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has transcribed portions of the Melanesian Book of Common Prayer in Bislama. Bislama is an official language of Vanuatu, where it is spoken by about 6,000 people as a first language and more than 200,000 others as an additional language. (English-speakers may find it fascinating to read some of the text of these liturgies aloud.)

Cheyenne: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Cheyenne (1900)
The 1892 BCP of the US Episcopal Church was translated into many Native American languages, among them Cheyenne, now spoken in Montana and Oklahoma. This translation is especially noteworthy for its association with David Pendleton Oakerhater, commemorated on the calendar of the US Episcopal Church on 1 September.

Cree: The 1662 BCP in Cree
'Translated by Bishop John Horden (1828–1893) into the Cree dialect of the area around Moosonee, Ontario (Canada), this edition was first printed in 1889, and is now available as a image files on-line.'

Dakota: Niobrara Wocekiye Wowapi
Tthe [US] 1928 Book of Common Prayer in Dakota. 'Missionaries from the Episcopal Church [USA] were quite active among the Dakota, with the result that many today are practicing Episcopalians. Approximately half the Epicopalians in South Dakota today are Native American.'

Danish: Liturgien, eller den Almindelige Bønnebog (1896)
This translation of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer in to Danish was published in several editions for use on the Danish islands of St Croix and St Thomas, as well as among Danish Anglican communities in Canada and elsewhere. [This translation is hosted on Google Books, and is not available to view or download in every country.]

Dutch: Het Boek van het Algemeen Gebet
Portions of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer are now available online in Dutch. This edition was first published in 1853 for use in what is now South Africa.

Fijian: Na Soqoni Tabu: Na Veitarataravi Ni Noda Veiqaravi Kei Na Kalou (1966)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized this service for Holy Communion in Fijian. Fijian is a major Austronesian language spoken in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.

Florida: Na Lei Kokoeliulivuti / Prayers in the Florida Language
AO editor Richard Mammana has transcribed this translation of portions of the 1662 BCP into a major Melanesian language called Nggela or Gela or Florida. It was translated by Alfred Penny (1845-1935), a priest who served in the Melanesian Mission from 1875 to 1886.

French: The 1962 Canadian Book of Common Prayer in French

Gitxsan: A Selection of Prayers translated from the Book of Common Prayer in the Giatikshan Language (1881)
'Gitxsan is a language spoken in northwestern British Columbia in the upper basin of the Skeena River, in the Diocese of Caledonia. Estimates of the number of speakers vary from about 400 to 1000; around 13,000 people are part of the Gitxsan nation.'

Gwich'in: Ettunetle tutthug enjit gichinchik ak? sakrament rsikotitinyoo (1899)
Portions of the BCP are now available online in Gwich'in. Gwich'in, also called Takudh, is spoken in Alaska, the Yukon, and the Northwest Territories. [This translation is hosted on Google Books, and is not available to view or download in every country.]

Haida: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Haida
This translation of parts of the 1662 BCP, believed to be the only Anglican liturgical translation into Haida, was prepared by John Henry Keen (1852-1950). Haida is an endangered North American language spoken on the Queen Charlotte Islands and in the Prince of Wales Archipelago.

Hawaiian: Ka Buke o ka Pule Ana a Me Ka Hooko Ana (1862)
Portions of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer are now available online in Hawaiian in a transcription by AO editor Richard Mammana, with an introduction by Chad Wohlers.

Hawaiian: 1979 Book of Common Prayer (US, portions) in Hawaiian

Hebrew: The 1662 Book of Common Prayer in Hebrew
Presented as a single 28MB PDF file for download.

Igbo: Ekpere Anekpere Chineke N'Obo N'Okwu Ibo
Portions of the BCP in Igbo, a major language of Nigeria, are available online in html.

Inuinnaktun: Service Book of the Western Eskimos for Use in the Diocese of Mackenzie River (1922)
'"Western Eskimo" was a name used formerly for Inuinnaktun (also known as Coppermine or Inuinakton), an Eskimo-Aleut language of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories in Canada.' Digitized for Charles Wohlers' BCP website by AO Editor Richard Mammana.

Inuktitut: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer together with Hymns and Addresses in Eskimo (1900)
This early translation into Inuktitut was prepared by the experienced missionary-linguist E.J. Peck (1850-1924).

Isekiri: Iwe Ise ti Egwari Sekiri (1909).
Portions of the BCP are now available online in Isekiri, spoken by about 500,000 people in the Niger Delta.

Japanese: 日本聖公会祈祷書
The 1959 Book of Common Prayer in Japanese has now been transcribed for online publication by AO Editor Richard Mammana. Although superseded in 1990 by a contemporary-language liturgy, this BCP may be used in the Holy Catholic Church of Japan with permission of local diocesan bishops.

Kwak'wala: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer: Kwagutl (1900)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized this translation of parts of the 1662 BCP into Kwak'wala, an endangered Canadian First Nations language spoken in British Columbia. You know all about Kwak'wala if you have read Margaret Craven's fine novel I Heard the Owl Call My Name.

Kwara'ae: Na Buka Fuana Fanga’a Ana Maoma Abu (2001).
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized services from the Book of Common Prayer in Kwara'ae; this is the largest indigenous vernacular language of the Solomon Islands, spoken mainly in the Anglican Church of Melanesia's Diocese of Malaita.

Lau: Na Book Fooalaa (1945).
Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Lau, a major language of Malaita Island. Digitized for Charles Wohlers' BCP website by AO Editor Richard Mammana.

Lavukaleve: Tarai Olegis
Anglican Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, Eucharistic prayers, Catechism and Hymns in the Lavukaleve language, Russell Islands, Melanesia.

Lengua: Nimpasmo Iktakmila
The Holy Communion from the 1662 BCP is now available online in Lengua, an indigenous language used in Paraguay.

Luganda: Service Book in Luganda (1900)
Luganda is a major language of Uganda, spoken by about three million people.

Maisin: Bada ari Foraga ari Buandi ari nane, ai Totoruga Muanfafusi (1921)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized the Holy Communion in Maisin, a language of Papua New Guinea. This translation of an adaptation of the Order for Holy Communion from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer was prepared by missionary priest Arthur Prout Jennings.

Malay: Peratoran Sembahyang (1969)
'Malay is one of the major languages of South East Asia, where it has official status in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei.' This translation of the orders for Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, Holy Communion, Baptism, Confirmation, Matrimony, and Burial, was published for the Diocese of Sabah shortly after its creation. Digitized for Charles Wohlers' BCP website by AO Editor Richard Mammana.

Manx Gaelic: Padjer Fastyr
This page directs you to online liturgical resources in Manx Gaelic, particularly new transcriptions of annual Manx Evening Prayer services in 1924, 1930 and 1951.

Maori: Te Pukapuka o nga Inoi
Online in html, excepting the Psalter; transcribed by AO Editor Richard Mammana.

Mer: Opolera Wetpur
c. 1957 translation of the Holy Communion service into Mer. 'This language, also known as Meriam Mir, or Mer, is used primarily on Murray Island ("Mer" in the local language), the most easterly of the isalnds in the Torres Strait between Australia and Papua New Guinea.'

Merelava: Na Buk Tatar (1975)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Merelava, a language used in the Diocese of Vanuatu.

Mohawk: The Book of Common Prayer in Mohawk
AO Editor Richard Mammana has transcribed an 1875 version of the American 1789 BCP translated into Mohawk. It is now available on Charles Wohler's magisterial BCP site. The translation is by Eleazar Williams, an American clergyman (1787-1858) who claimed to be the Lost Dauphin—the son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

Mota: O Book Tataro (1947)
Portions of the Book of Common Prayer are now available online in Mota, the former offical mission language of Anglican missionaries in Melanesia. Mota is spoken today by about 1500 people on Mota island itself, and in diaspora communities in Vanuatu.

Nlaka'pamux or Thompson: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Nlaka'pamux or Thompson
These translations of services from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer were prepared by English SPG missionary John Booth Good (1833-1916) between 1878 and 1880. Linguists refer to this highly endangered south-central British Columbian language as Thompson or Nlaka'pamux. It is classified as an Interior Salish language; there are believed to be fewer than 600 speakers of Thompson / Nlaka'pamux today.

Nisga'a: The Nishga Liturgy (1977)
Nisga'a (formerly spelled Nishga) is an indigenous Canadian language spoken by about 700 people in northwestern British Columbia in the Diocese of Caledonia. 'Noteworthy aspects of this liturgy are its incorporation of prayers for the tribal council, the invitation of prayer by tribal elders, the inclusion of the bishop under his indigenous name rather than his western name in the intercessions, and the dismissal blessing.'

Norwegian: Missions-Bog for Den protestantisk-episkopale kirke
Erik Leopold Petersen (1844-1887) prepared this translation of portions of the BCP into Norwegian. It was published in Chicago in 1875 for use in Norwegian-speaking congregations of the Diocese of Minnesota.

Ojibwe: The Book of Common Prayer Translated into the Language of the Ojibbeway Indians in the Diocese of the Moosonee (1880)
Charles Wohlers has digitized this BCP in Ojibwe, a major indigenous language of Canada and the United States. This translation was published in Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics, and it is available for download in Adobe Acrobat format.

Ottawa: The Morning and Evening Prayer, Translated from the Book of Common Prayer of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America
This liturgy published in 1844 for Ottawa members of the Diocese of Michigan is the only known liturgical translation into the Ottawa language, spoken by indigenous North Americans in Oklahoma, Michigan and Ontario. AO Editor Richard Mammana transcribed this text.

Owa: Fagarafenga ni Gomagomaafatani mana Manuurafitani mana Ngau Apuna ana I na woita i owa rafa: Santa Ana Prayer Book (1956)
AO Editor Richard Mammana has digitized portions of the 1938 Melanesian Book of Common Prayer in Owa or Santa Ana, a language of the southern Solomon Islands.

Pileni: Atalatala Tautaufaa ke Tautaufaai i Thauna e Tapu (1918)
Portions of the Book of Common Prayer are now available online in Pileni, a language spoken in the Diocese of Temotu in the Church of the Province of Melanesia. Part of the significance of this language derives from its use on Nukapu, the island where John Coleridge Patteson was martyred in 1871.

Portuguese: Livro da Oraçaõ Comum
The 1950 Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church of Brazil. Charles Wohlers has posted the beginnings of a transcription of this Portuguese-language translation of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer of the US Episcopal Church.

Raga: Leo huri ganisabuga (1954)
The Holy Communion service in Raga, a major language of Vanuatu spoken mainly on Pentecost Island, is now available online.

Ronga: Abuku da Kukhongota Kerenkeni (1920)
Charles Wohlers has digitized much of the 1662 BCP in Ronga, a Bantu language spoken in Mozambique.

Savosavo: Tabu Samu Koluzagu Lova Abeni Lo Savo La Sua Vere La Archbishop Lova Malanala Telo Tei Ata Melanesia Lo Province La
This liturgy, published in 1978, is used by members of the Church of the Province of Melanesia on Savo Island. It is written in Savosavo, a threatened language spoken by just over 2000 people.

Selako: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Selako
Selako is a language spoken by over 100,000 people in the far west of the island of Borneo, mostly in Indonesia, but also in Malaysia. The bishop named in the intercessory prayers is Basil Colby Roberts (1887-1947, Bishop of Singapore 1927-1941), so this allows the possibility of dating its publication during his tenure.

Sinhala: The Book of Common Prayer Translated into Singhalese (1831)
This translation of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer into Sinhala represents one of the earliest Anglican publishing endeavours in Ceylon, now known as Sri Lanka.

Sioux: Ikce Wocekiye Wowapi Kin Qa Minahanska Makoce Kin En Token Wokduze (1870).
AO editor Richard Mammana has transcribed a translation of portions of the Book of Common Prayer in the Yankton dialect of the Sioux language, also called Dakota. Sioux is spoken by c. 26,000 people in Canada and the United States, and the BCP has been translated into several of its dialects at regular intervals.

Spanish: Orden de la Santa Comunión del Libro de Oración Común,
nuevamente traducido al castellano. The Revd. John Lynch has published a new translation into Spanish of the 1662 BCP's order for Holy Communion.

Spanish: Libro de Oración Común
The 1979 US BCP in Spanish, is available in Adobe Acrobat format from the Episcopal Church Center. Also available are Lesser Feasts and Fasts and the Book of Occasional Services in Spanish.

Spanish: Libro de Oración Común de Chile
The Anglican Church of Chile has made its Book of Common Prayer available online in MS Word files for download.

Swahili: Hiki ndicho Chuo cha Sala ya Umoja
Chad Wohlers has digitized much of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer in Swahili. This translation into one of the most widely spoken languages in East Africa was by prepared by CMS missionaries in the Mombasa Diocese and published in 1943.

Swahili: Kitabu cha Sala za Kanuni
Chad Wohlers has digitized the 1919 Book of Common Prayer according to the Use of the Church of Zanzibar. This BCP was influenced heavily in an Anglo-Catholic direction by Frank Weston (1871-1924) and the Universities' Mission to Central Africa. No English translation of the Swahili text was ever published.

Swahili: Njia ya Ibada (c1939)
Chad Wohlers has digitized portions of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer in Swahili.

Swedish: Handbok wid Gudstjenstens Förrättande (1879)
'This translation of parts of the 1789 BCP of the American Episcopal Church was prepared for Swedish-speaking emigrants to the United States.' Transcribed by AO Editor Richard Mammana, the introductory page for this service book includes comprehensive information on other Anglican liturgical translations into Swedish.

Tikopia: Te Rotu Te Kau Kava Tapu
The Holy Communion as celebrated in the Tikopia language is now available online; this language is spoken by more than 3000 people in the Diocese of Temotu in the Church of the Province of Melanesia.

Tongan: Koe Tohi ‘oe Gahi mo Efiafi
The Book of Common Prayer is now available online in a 1912 Tongan translation transcribed by an AO editor.

Tsimshian: A Zimshian Version of Portions of the Book of Common Prayer (1882)
Tsimshian (spelled Zimshian in the text presented here) is a language spoken today by about 800 people in British Columbia, and in southeastern Alaska. It is closely related to Nisga'a and Gitxsan.

Ukrainian: Sobornii molitovnik i podavannia sviatikh tain ta ynshi obriadi ta zvichai scho vzhivaiut'sia v anglikans'kii tserkvi v kanadiis'kii dominii (1926).
This link will take you to a remarkable Ukrainian-language translation of the 1918 Canadian Book of Common Prayer.

Vaturanga: Na Voihavo Matena na Hahani Tabu (1950)
This translation of portions of the Book of Common Prayer into Vaturanga is now available online. Vaturanga is spoken on northwestern Guadalcanal, where it serves as an important liturgical language in light of its intelligibility outside of its group of first-language speakers.

Welsh: The Book of Common Prayer in Welsh
The 1662 Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England was used as the Prayer Book in Wales up until 1966, when trial liturgies were introduced, followed by a Prayer Book specific to the Church in Wales in 1984. Revision is still ongoing, and a new Communion service was authorized in 2004, in English and in Welsh. Additionally, the Church in Wales has the 2004 Ordinal online, both in English and in Welsh.

West Ambae: Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in West Ambae
This language is spoken in the Diocese of Vanuatu on Aoba island.