William Tyndale

William Tyndale was an English biblical translator, scholar, and religious reformer born around 1494 in Gloucestershire. Sources agree that he became one of the key early figures of the Protestant Reformation by insisting that scripture should be available to people in their own language, and he is especially known for translating the New Testament into English directly from Greek, along with parts of the Old Testament.

Because church and state authorities opposed that work, Tyndale carried out much of it while living on the European mainland rather than safely in England. His English New Testament was printed in the 1520s and circulated despite official efforts to suppress it. He was eventually arrested, condemned for heresy, and executed in 1536 near Brussels.

Tyndale's influence lasted far beyond his lifetime. His phrasing and plain, forceful style helped shape later English Bibles and left a deep mark on religious writing in English more broadly, which is why he is often remembered not only as a martyr of the Reformation but also as one of the most important shapers of biblical English.