Press release on the award to Dr. Marianne Beerle-Moor, Director of the Institute for Bible Translation Russia/CIS, of an honorary doctorate by the Russian Academy of Sciences.

On 23 May 2005 the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), on the submission of the Department of Historical and Philological Sciences, awarded Dr. Marianne Beerle-Moor, Director of the Institute for Bible Translation Russia/CIS, with the academic title of Doctor (honoris causa). The ceremony took place at the RAS Presidium in Moscow in the presence of renowned scholars and academicians. RAS President Academician Yuriy Osipov noted the selfless and devoted activity of Dr. Marianne Beerle-Moor, her fruitful work in the field of Bible translation into the non-Slavic languages of Russia/CIS, as well as her scientific contribution to linguistics and ethno-linguistics.

Marianne Beerle-Moor, Swiss by birth, graduated from the Pedagogical Department of Freiburg University (Switzerland) in 1968, Kolding Bible College (Denmark) in 1971, and the Linguistic Department of Zurich University in 1982, where she defended her PhD thesis on the problems of the Lezgi verb in 1984. The focus of Beerle-Moor's scientific interest at that time was research into the morphological analysis of the Lezgi verb and the noun in the Chechen language. The results of her investigations meant a considerable improvement in the descriptive system of grammar in these languages.

Marianne Beerle-Moor spent much time and effort on the studies of the sociolinguistic problems of the Dagestan languages in Turkey where she traveled from 1979 and resided, partly in Istanbul, partly in Lezgi and Chechen villages, from 1985 to1988, sharing the way of life with the local population.

Since 1994 Marianne Beerle-Moor has worked in Russia. In 1997 she became the leader of the Institute for Bible Translation, which was founded in Sweden in 1973 and was registered as an independent Russian organization in 1995. Applying her knowledge of exegesis, linguistics and ethno-linguistics, Marianne Beerle-Moor directs the activity of the Russian IBT organization, which works with 65 non-Slavic languages. Under her leadership the New Testament has been translated into 15 languages, portions of the Bible into 54 languages, and by 2006 the New Testament will have been translated into 3 more languages (for the first time ever).

In February 2002 Dr. Marianne Beerle-Moor was awarded the Order, Third Class, "For Serving the Native Land" of St. Dmitriy Donskoy and St. Sergius of Radonezh for the work of enlightenment and merits in the spiritual and moral formation of Russian society. In May 2005 on the Decree of the Yakut President Dr. Beerle-Moor was awarded the "Civil Valor" Order for the revival of spirituality and the translation of the New Testament into the Yakut language.

The activity of the Institute, headed by Dr. Marianne Beerle-Moor, plays an important role in the preservation and development of the endangered languages of Russia/CIS and the revival of those close to extinction.