How public is the public domain?

After publishing the Book of Bible Prayers, which I’d collected from many translations of the Bible and prayerfully paraphrased (prayer-a-phrased) into everyday English, I became aware of the need for another version of the prayer book in KJV only. For many people, the King James Version is the only Bible to read.

Since King James of England commissioned the KJV translation in 1604 (published in 1611), we’ve been assured in recent decades that this beloved version is in the public domain and, therefore, can be quoted as much as we like as long as we identify the source. That’s almost true! But we’ll get back to that.

Contemporary translations have usually been commissioned, too, often by a Bible society or a Bible publisher, who holds the copyright. Generally, you can quote X number of verses (usually 250, but sometimes 500) without having to get the publisher’s permission. (The front matter of the edition will specify.)  Then you just have to acknowledge the copyright date and publishing company in your credits or on your title page.

I didn’t need to obtain permission with the Book of Bible Prayers because the text is an original compilation in my paraphrase with the exception of the Lord’s Prayer from the Gospel of Matthew, which I quoted and acknowledged as being from the KJV. However, the KJV version of the book having those same Bible prayers turned out to be another matter!

Come to find out, the KJV is indeed in the public domain – in the United States! If, though, your work profusely quotes the King James Version, as the Book of KJV Prayers does, for publication in the United Kingdom, guess what! You have to get permission from the crown!

After King James commissioned this translation into English, the British crown continued to renew the copyright as needed over the next 400 years! So, to avoid getting in trouble with the queen, the Book of KJV Prayers will be available in the United States only. Lord willing, I’ll occasionally post prayers from that book on the Bible Prayers site – but with an acknowledgement, of course.

Mary Sayler, ©2019

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