New Testament Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Text-types=== By the 4th century, textual "families" or types of text become discernible among [[biblical manuscript|New Testament manuscripts]]. A "text-type" is the name given to a family of texts with similar readings due to common ancestors and mutual correction. Many early manuscripts contain individual readings from several different earlier forms of text. Modern textual critics have identified the following text-types among textual witnesses to the New Testament: The [[Alexandrian text-type]] is usually considered to generally preserve many early readings. It is represented, e.g., by [[Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209|Codex Vaticanus]], [[Codex Sinaiticus]] and the [[Bodmer Papyri]]. The [[Western text-type]] is generally longer and can be paraphrastic, but can also preserve early readings. The [[Acts of the Apostles#Manuscripts|Western version of the Acts of the Apostles]] is, notably, 8.5% longer than the Alexandrian form of the text. Examples of the Western text are found in [[Codex Bezae]], [[Codex Claromontanus]], [[Codex Washingtonianus]], the [[Vetus Latina|Old Latin]] (i.e., Latin translations made prior to the [[Vulgate]]), as well as in quotations by [[Marcion]], [[Tatian]], [[Irenaeus]], [[Tertullian]] and [[Cyprian]]. A text-type referred to as the "[[Caesarean text-type]]" and thought to have included witnesses such as [[Codex Koridethi]] and minuscule 565, can today be described neither as "Caesarean" nor as a text-type as was previously thought. The Gospel of Mark in [[Papyrus 45]], [[Codex Washingtonianus]] and in [[Family 13]] reflects a distinct type of text. Increasing standardization of distinct (and once local) text-types eventually gave rise to the [[Byzantine text-type]]. Since most manuscripts of the New Testament do not derive from the first several centuries, that is, they were copied after the rise of the Byzantine text-type, this form of text is found the majority of extant manuscripts and is therefore often called the "Majority Text". As with all of the other (earlier) text-types, the Byzantine can also occasionally preserve early readings. Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page