The eminent lexicographer Frederick W. Danker passed away on February 2nd 2012. He was born on
July 20th, 1920 in Frankenmuth, Michigan. He completed his studies in the Concordia Seminary and obtained a PhD in Classics at the University of Chicago, Illinois. From 1954 he taught in Concordia Seminary.
Danker’s contribution to New Testament scholarship is one of the most substantial in recent history. He is best known for his thorough revision of the English version of Bauer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, which was released as the 3rd edition in 2000. It is said that for ten years, Professor Danker worked on BDAG for twelve hours a day, six days a week.
In 2004, a Festschrift with the title “Biblical Greek Language and Lexicography: Essays in Honor of Frederick W. Danker” was published to celebrate Danker's work, including 18 essays by Peter R. Burton, Rykle Borger, William A. Johnson, Richard E. Whitaker, Trevor Evans, Stanley Porter.
Prof. Danker was Christ Seminary-Seminex Professor Emeritus of New Testament at the Lutheran School of Theology, Chicago, Illinois.