Holy Bible-King James Version

Sacra Bibbia-King James Version

In 1604, King James I of England authorized that a new translation of the Bible into English be started.

It was finished in 1611, just 85 years after the first translation of the New Testament into English appeared (Tyndale, 1526).

The Authorized Version, or King James Version(KJV), quickly became the standard for English-speaking Protestants.

Its flowing language and prose rhythm has had a profound influence on the literature of the past 400 years.

With the development of stereotype printing at the beginning of the 19th century, this version of the Bible became the most widely printed book in history, almost all such printings presenting the standard text of 1769 extensively re-edited by Benjamin Blayney at Oxford; and nearly always omitting the books of the Apocrypha.

Today the unqualified title 'King James Version' commonly identifies this Oxford standard text, especially in the United States.