Religious discourse translation, more specifically, Bible translation, lies at the very heart of the mission that the Nida Institute and its parent organization, American Bible Society carry out. The Nida Institute entrusts this work to a Translations Unit that collaborates with its project partners on theoretical and pragmatic levels.

Bible translation at the Nida Institute covers both domestic and international projects.  It applies insights not only from translation studies but also from biblical scholarship, cross-cultural communication, anthropology, and linguistics to the practical work of translation.

Domestically, projects include the translation of the Bible into native American languages.Currently, staff is involved in the translation (or revision) of the Bible into Lakota (Sioux), Choctaw, and Yupik.Teamwork is the hallmark of these projects because they depend on the work of native language translators and readers as well as on translation scholars and biblical experts who support the team with exegetical and technical expertise.

Internationally, staff recently helped complete revisions of the Bible into Vietnamese and Chinese. They are now helping to prepare and publish Chinese scholarly resources for Chinese-speaking Bible translators, as well as for Chinese audiences in general.

Staff stay up to date with research and scholarship in the larger discipline of translation studies to which their work belongs and to which they bring unique skill sets, subject matter expertise, and professional experience.They participate actively in professional meetings and conferences devoted to the advancement of biblical scholarship. At home in many cultures and comfortable working in multiple languages, both ancient and modern, staff bring an encyclopedic knowledge of translation theory and practice to the academy, church, and Bible Societies. They contribute invaluable field data from around the world to those engaged in translation studies, expanding and deepening perspectives previously based primarily on observations of European languages and projects.

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