Gentiles in the Book of Mormon

Title

Gentiles in the Book of Mormon

Publication Type

Journal Article

Year of Publication

2019

Authors

Hilton, John, III (Primary), Sharp, Ryan (Primary), Wilcox, Brad (Primary), and Hansen, Jaron (Primary)

Journal

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Pagination

267-288

Volume

33

Abstract

The word Gentiles appears 141 times in the Book of Mormon (the singular Gentile appears only five times.) It appears more frequently than key words such as baptize, resurrection, Zion, and truth. The word Gentiles does not appear with equal frequency throughout the Book of Mormon; in fact, it appears in only five of its fifteen books: 1 Nephi, 2 Nephi, 3 Nephi, Mormon, and Ether. Additionally, Book of Mormon speakers did not say Gentiles evenly. Some speakers said the word much less often than we might expect while others used it much more. Nephi1 used Gentiles the most (43 times), and Christ Himself used it 38 times. In addition to analyzing which speakers used the word, this study shows distinctive ways in which Book of Mormon speakers used this word.

Subject Keywords

Gentiles
Stylometry
Wordprints

Bibliographic Citation

Terms of use

Items in the BMC Archive are made publicly available for non-commercial, private use. Inclusion within the BMC Archive does not imply endorsement. Items do not represent the official views of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or of Book of Mormon Central.

© 2024 Scripture Central: A Non-Profit Organization. All rights reserved. Registered 501(c)(3). EIN: 20-5294264