Trans. Abbrev. Conf.
Abbreviations are a helpful thing. When talking about Bibles, it's much easier to simply write "NLT" than New Living Translation every I want to reference it.
I don't always remember to do it, but when writing a blog entry that refers to a translation, I try to write it out the first time I reference it along with the abbreviation in parentheses which I simply use from that point forward.
With the advent of the New American Standard Bible in the 1970's we got the four-letter abbreviation, "NASB," followed by the NKJV, NRSV and now the HCSB (which we have recently heard is going to soon be reduced to simply the three-letter "CSB").
A lot of us who discuss translations regularly take these abbreviations for granted, but surely they cause confusion now and then to the unititiated.
So as excited as I was to see the release of the New English Translation of the Septuagint (which in my opinion is the first significant English translation of the Septuagint since Brenton's of 1851), I was very disappointed in its acronym: NETS. And yes, that IS the acronym as it is set by the publishers on the copyright page with the statement:
"A New English Translation of the Septuagint may be quoted in nonsalable media (such as church bulletins, orders of service, liturgies, newsletters, etc.) without inclusion of a copyright notice, but the abbreviation NETS must appear at the end of each quotation."
What's the problem with "NETS"? Well, to me, it is way too close to NET (New English Translation) which was already too close to NEB (New English Bible).
NEB = New English Bible
NET = New English Transltion
NETS = New English Translation of the Septuagint
And, of course, none of these three translations have anything to do with the others.
I wonder where all the creativity has gone in naming translations. I also wonder if the NET Bible was even on the radar of the NETS editors when they came up with the name. Although I personally consider the NET Bible a major translation (and my review is finally in the works), it has not received the exposure it deserves because it (to my knowledge) is only available through mail order.
Some might feel the nearness of the acronyms to the NEB is a non-issue because it is now nearly four decades from its last edition before the REB. However, I still occasionally come across NEW reference books that refer to the NEB--sometimes in EXCLUSION to the REB which has been available for almost two decades!
So, I see room for all kinds of abbreviation confusion, especially between the NET and NETS. And one would think that with 26 letters of the alphabet, we could come up with a few more unique combinations!