Our Story
Not so long ago we were a stone age, hunter-gatherer, monolingual society, living deep in the mosquito infested sago swamps at the far southern edge of the Mamberamo river basin in Papua, Indonesia.
Our way of life in the old days was violent and revenge centered. Early death was common as a result of birth complications, disease, the dangers of jungle life and constant inter-tribal warfare. Our parents and grandparents and ancestors as far back as anyone can go, grew up and lived in constant fear of reprisals and sorcery. Adultery and stealing –wives as well as food and goods, was a way of life. When travelling, the women carried the heavy loads so the the men would have their hands free and bows ready to defend themselves and their families. It was common to use friendship as a means to eventually get revenge. There was no one we could really trust.
Into this painful and horrific situation came the gospel, brought to our parents and grandparents by some evangelists from another language group.
It happened just like the parable of the sower (See the Bible: Mark 4). It took a few years to get their attention and penetrate their understanding, but they were longing for a way out of the cycle of killing. When they received the gospel, almost our whole group turned to the Lord. It didn’t matter what kind of soil they represented, rocky, weedy or good, it all turned green with new growth. The whole society changed into a golden age of harmony and openness to God’s word. Villages, an airstrip, medical care, schools and a new way of life began and a church was born.
Most of us who are young adult men are literate, as well as a growing number of our women. We have easy access to the coastal town of Nabire through subsidized flights and a growing population in that town. Many are in school there. Others of us are in school in the Jayapura area.
The name of our language is 'Yav Ba'. 'Yav Ba' means 'our very own language'. Our language is listed in the Ethnologue under the name Iau with the code ISO 639-3: tmu.
