William Tyndale, who was born in England in about 1494, is chiefly remembered for his theological and political contributions to the Protestant Reformation of the fifteenth century, but his contributions to the art of translation are no less important. In fact, translation was an essential element of the Reformation, as one of the major changes the Protestant churches sought was for liturgical and scriptural materials to be translated into, and used in, the local vernacular languages.
Among his chief works, Tyndale translated much of the Bible into English, drawing directly on texts in Hebrew and Greek; he was fluent in French, Greek, Hebrew, German, Italian, Latin, and Spanish, as well as his native English. His translations were the first to be reproduced using the printing press, then still quite a new invention, and would drive Reformation thinking across the English-speaking world.
Ultimately, Tyndale was executed as a heretic – first strangled and then burnt at the stake. However, this was on grounds of his opposition to the English King Henry 8th’s plans to annul his marriage and had nothing to do with the quality of Tyndale’s translations, which were excellent.
The King James Bible, which remains the standard text for British Anglicanism – and which has often been praised for the quality of the translation – was heavily based on Tyndale’s original work. Its impact on the English language, and on the twists and turns of history, is immeasurable.
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