Neophytos Vamvas (Greek: Νεόφυτος Βάμβας; 1770 – 9 January 1856) was a priest, philosopher, philologist, author, professor, and dean.

He was ordained a deacon at age 20 and in 1804 went to study in France where he met Adamantios Korais.

[2] On his return to Greece, he taught in Chios, at the Ionian Academy of Corfu, at the first High School (Gymnasium) of Syros[2] and later in the newly founded University of Athens.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople issued an encyclical condemning the translation.

It was "based on the Textus Receptus and was written in a form of Katharevousa that was extremely close to the original "Koine" Greek, being more like a paraphrase than a translation".

When he returned to Constantinople he became the teacher of the family of George Mavrokordatos and Konstantinos Hatzeris.

He participated in the compilation of an important Greek dictionary referred to as Kivotos (Κιβωτού).

Around this period he joined the museum of the Magali Scoli tou Genous.

[6] Four years later in 1808, he traveled to Paris and met the eminent Adamantios Korais.

While Vamvas was in Paris he attended classes in Chemistry with Louis Jacques Thénard.

He translated his book Treatise of Elementary Chemistry into the Greek language.

In Paris, he taught Greek and traded carpets to make a living.

In April 1821, he traveled to Hydra to recruit the Kountouriotis brothers to liberate the island of Chios.

One year later at the recommendation of the modern Greek leadership namely because of his friendship with Adamantios Korais and Demetrios Ypsilantis, he was selected to become professor of philosophy at the University of Athens.

Methodios supported the use of the people's language in education instead of archaic forms of Greek.

The controversy known as the Neophytos Incident erupted because Vamvas tried to translate the bible into modern Greek or the peoples language.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople issued an encyclical condemning any translation of the Bible into vernacular Greek (1836).

Constantinos Oikonomos an expert in the Greek language and Orthodox scholar and theologian, wrote a treatise in defense of the publication it was four-volumes.