Six Issues of Liahona in Simplified Chinese to Be Offered Annually
Contributed By By Lok Yi Chan, Church News and Events
Chinese speakers in various parts of the world will soon be able to read the Liahona in simplified Chinese.
Article Highlights
- This year, the Liahona will begin to be published in simplified Chinese.
- Six issues—January, April, May, July, October, and November—will be printed each year. They will also be available online.
- The January and April issues are available online; the May issue was the first to be offered in print.
- Readers outside mainland China can subscribe to the magazine either through the Online Store or by calling Customer Support.
- The magazine will also be available at the Hong Kong and Salt Lake Distribution Services stores, as well as at other stores as demand requires.
“We are grateful that these faithful Chinese members will now have access to the words of living apostles and prophets in their own written language.”—Elder Anthony D. Perkins of the Seventy, president of the Asia Area
Chinese speakers in many parts of the world will soon be able to receive the Liahona in simplified Chinese in addition to traditional Chinese, which has been available for some time.
Six Liahona issues, including the two conference issues (May and November), have been approved to be printed in simplified Chinese each year. The January and April issues have been published on the Web. The May conference edition was the first issue to be available in print.
Simplified Chinese characters are created by decreasing the number of strokes and simplifying the forms of traditional Chinese characters. Previously the only form of Chinese the Liahona has been available in is traditional Chinese.
Of the change, Elder Anthony D. Perkins of the Seventy, president of the Asia Area, said: “In recent years, thousands of individuals from mainland China have joined the Church while studying or living outside the People’s Republic of China.
“These converts have accepted the gospel of Jesus Christ in dozens of countries, especially in English-speaking nations like the United States, Australia, Canada, and England,” he continued. “Although they can read English or other languages, we are grateful that these faithful Chinese members will now have access to the words of living apostles and prophets in their own written language.”
Because these Liahona readers are so dispersed, neither the conference editions nor the regular issues—which will be published in January, April, July, and October—will include local news pages.
Print Edition
Printed copies of the Liahona in simplified Chinese are available for purchase at the Hong Kong Distribution and Salt Lake City Distribution stores. Other stores may also carry the magazines, depending on local demand.
Readers outside of mainland China who are interested in subscribing can do so through the Online Store or by calling Customer Support. (In the United States, this phone number is 1-800-537-5971. In Hong Kong, members should call the Distribution Services store directly at 852-2756-5777. Readers in other countries can find their Customer Support number at the Online Store.)
Those subscribing should specify “simplified Chinese” in their request rather than simply saying “Chinese,” as the Liahona is now offered in both traditional and simplified Chinese.
Online Edition
The Liahona in simplified Chinese will also soon be available online at ChurchofJesusChrist.org. PDFs of the magazine will be posted on the simplified Chinese language (to be created this summer). From ChurchofJesusChrist.org, click “Languages” in the upper right corner, and then select “See Other Languages on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.” The simplified Chinese page, like other language pages, will house all Church materials available in that language.
The January 2012 issue was the first time the magazine was translated into simplified Chinese and published with complete, full-color graphics. (Previous issues were provided as text-only documents.)
