Eugene Nida has passed away today at the age of 96. There is an obituary by Dr Philip C. Stine on the United Bible Societies website here.
As Stine writes "Nida recognised the need for translators to have the very best base texts to work from, and led major projects on both the Greek New Testament and the Hebrew Old Testament." In this connection I would like to remind us that in 1955, Nida, as Translation Secretary of the American Bible Society, took the initiative to establish an international committee to prepare the first edition of the United Bible Societies Greek New Testament (UBSGNT). The first editorial committee was composed of Kurt Aland, Matthew Black, Bruce M. Metzger, Allen Wikgren and Arthur Vööbus.
I am very grateful for his scholarship and dedication to text and translation. May he rest in peace!