Martin Luther’s Translation Thought, Its Formation And Influence

Martin Luther was a renowned religious reformer, theologian, and the Bible translator inthe16thcentury of Germany. He translated New Testament and Old Testament from Hebrewand ancient Greek into vernacular German language, making many people to find access toGod. In view of this, Luther Bible was honored as the first “People’s Bible”. However, at thattime Luther’s version of Bible met sharp criticism. Some scholars criticized him for changingsome content of the Scripture. Against criticism, in his Open Letter on Translating, he notonly defended himself, but also expounded his ideas about translation:(i) Translation must bedone by using vernacular German language.(ii) Target text must be in concord with grammar,and maintaining the meaning of the original is a top priority.(iii) Translator must followseven principles to translation.(iv) The team approach will guarantee the best work oftranslation. Luther’s translation thought demonstrates a new concept and idea with a pioneersignificant, and thus exerts a profound influence on German language and literature, andpromotes the development of Western translation theory.The paper has its title formed from the Luther’s translation thought, its formation andinfluence. By employing such research methods as analysis of material in history,induction-deduction and influence research, the paper has it as its purpose to reveal theessence of Luther’s translation theory and its contributions to German language and literatureand to Western translation theory. The first chapter of this paper introduces Luther’stranslation theory systematically, exploring the connotations of his translation theory. Chaptertwo discusses the reasons for the formation of his translation theory. Chapter three expoundsand proves the influence of Luther’s translation theory on the development of Westerntranslation theory as well as on German language and literature. The conclusion is drawn thatLuther’s translation thinking is not only shaped by his historical background, but also by histheological thought and Erasmus’ theory; The essence of Luther’s translation thought isprofound and significant, and thus fostering both the development of German language and literature, and laying a solid foundation for the development of Western translation theory aswell.