Gustavus Reinhold Nyländer (1776–1825, Kissy, Sierra Leone) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Lutheran missionary and linguist who worked in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

. He worked under the auspices of the Anglican

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

(CMS). Nyländer grew up in

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and then attended a

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. He came to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1805. Nyländer arrived in Sierra Leone in September 1806 with Leopold Butscher and Johann Prasse, all three of them

Lutherans Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

. Their instructions were to leave the settlement to work amongst the

Susu people The Susu or Soussou people are a Mande-speaking ethnic group living primarily in Guinea and northwestern Sierra Leone, particularly in Kambia District.

as soon as possible. Between 1812 and 1818 Nyländer was based on the Bullom Shore ( Kaffu Bullom). In 1814 he published ''Grammar and Vocabulary of the Bullom Language'' and ''Spelling-book of the Bullom Language: With a Dialogue and Scripture Exercises'' He subsequently moved to Kissy a village founded to cater for recaptives, enslaved Africans liberated by the

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West Africa Squadron The West Africa Squadron, also known as the Preventive Squadron, was a squadron of the Royal Navy whose goal was to suppress the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa. Formed in 1808 after the British Parliament passed ...

near

Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...

. He died here in 1825 from an illness which affected many missionaries.

Family

He married Anne Beverhout, the daughter of the

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Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

minister Henry Beverhout. Charles Wenzel was his brother-in-law. He had two daughters, Hannah and Anne.Jeffrey Green website, ''African Students in Chatham, Kent, in Victorian Times''
/ref> Both daughters married missionaries; Hannah married Edward Jones while Anne went on to marry James Schön.Dictionary of African Christian Biography website, ''Jakob Schon''
/ref>

Bibliography

Spelling-book of the Bullom Language: With a Dialogue and Scripture Exercises
London: For the Church Missionary Society, 1814.
Grammar and Vocabulary of the Bullom Language
London: For the Church Missionary Society, 1814.
Book Hoa Matthew: The Gospel According to Saint Matthew, in Bullom & English
London: Tilling and Hughes, 1816.
Good Word to All People Who Wish to Go to Heaven
London: For the Church Missionary Society, 1816.
Select Portions of the Book of Common Prayer, according to the Use of the United Church of England and Ireland (1816)
translated by Gustavus Reinhold Nyländer, digitized by Richard Mammana

References

External links

from Dictionary of African Christian Biography {{DEFAULTSORT:Nylander, Gustavus Reinhold 1776 births 1825 deaths German translators German Lutheran missionaries German Anglican missionaries Anglican missionaries in Sierra Leone German expatriates in Sierra Leone German missionary linguists 19th-century German linguists