Christianity · Texts & transmission
Complete English Bibles circulate in manuscript
Late 14th century CE
Followers associated with John Wyclif produced complete English translations of the Latin Bible. Earlier and later versions handled Latin phrasing differently, and manuscripts circulated despite restrictions. Their survival records both demand for vernacular scripture and arguments over who could translate and read it.
Why it matters
This episode shows that access to scripture in everyday languages mattered before printing and that translation could involve disputed authority as well as scholarship.
About the date
Broad dating for the Wycliffite versions; personal attribution to Wyclif is uncertain.