Noah-Webster

NoahWebsterNoahWebster,Jr.(October16,1758–May28,1843),wasalexicographer,,textbookpioneer,Englishspellingreformer,politicalwriter,editor,andprolificauthor.HehasbeencalledtheFatherofAmericanScholarshipandEducation.Hisblue-backedspellerbookstaughtfivegenerationsofAmericanchildrenhowtospellandread,secularizingtheireducation.Hisnamebecamesynonymouswithdictionary,especiallythemodernMerriam-Websterdictionarythatwasfirstpublishedin1828asAnAmericanDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage.BiographyWebsterwasborninNewHartford,Connecticut,toanestablishedfamily.Thoughheneverattendedcollege,Webster'sfatherwasintellectuallycuriousandprizededucation;hismotherspentlonghoursteachingNoahandhissiblingsspelling,mathematicsandmusic.Attheageofsix,WebsterbeganattendingadilapidatedoneroomprimaryschoolthathadbeenbuiltbyWestHartford'sEcclesiasticalSociety.Manyyearslater,hedescribedtheteachersasthedregs(渣滓)ofhumanityandcomplainedthattheinstructionwasmainlyinreligion.Webster'snegativeexperiencesinprimaryschoolmotivatedhimtoimprovetheeducationexperienceoffuturegenerations.Attheageoffourteen,hebegantoprepareforentrancetoYaleCollege.HeenrolledatYaleonhis16thbirthday,studyingduringhissenioryearwiththelearnedEzraStiles,Yale'spresident.HisfouryearsatYaleoverlappedwiththeAmericanRevolutionaryWar,andbecauseoffoodshortagesandthreatenedinvasionsbytheBritish,manyofhiscollegeclasseswereheldinothertowns.HisfatherhadmortgagedthefarmtosendWebstertoYale,butthesonwasnowonhisownandhadnomoretodowithhisfamily.WebsterlackedfirmcareerplansaftergraduatingfromYalein1778,HebrieflytaughtschoolinGlastonbury,foundtheworkingconditionstobeharshandthepaylow,thenlefttostudylawtoincreaseinearningpower.Afterquittinghislegalstudiesforayearandlapsingintoadepression,hefoundanotherpracticingattorneytomentorhim,completinghisstudiesandpassingthebarexamination(律师资格考试）in1781.In1785,hehadwrittenhisspeller,agrammarbookandareaderforelementaryschools.Proceedsfromcontinuingsalesofthepopularblue-backedspellerenabledWebstertospendmanyyearsworkingonhisfamousdictionary.Blue-BackedSpellerTheSpellerwasarrangedsothatitcouldbeeasilytaughttostudents,anditprogressedbyage.ThespellerwasoriginallytitledTheFirstPartoftheGrammaticalInstituteoftheEnglishLanguage.Overthecourseof385editionsinhislifetime,thetitlewaschangedin1786toTheAmericanSpellingBook,andagainin1829toTheElementarySpellingBook.MostpeoplecalledittheBlue-BackedSpellerbecauseofitsbluecover,andforthenextonehundredyears,Webster'sbooktaughtchildrenhowtoread,spell,andpronouncewords.ItwasthemostpopularAmericanbookofitstimeSlowly,editionbyedition,Websterchangedthespellingofwords,makingthemAmericanized.Hechosesovercinwordslikedefense,hechangedtheretoerinwordslikecenter,PublicationIn1806,Websterpublishedhisfirstdictionary,ACompendiousDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage.In1807Websterbegancompilinganexpandedandfullycomprehensivedictionary,AnAmericanDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage;ittookeighteenyearstocomplete.Toevaluatetheetymologyofwords,Websterlearnedtwenty-sixlanguages,includingOldEnglish(Anglo-Saxon),German,Greek,Latin,Italian,Spanish,French,Hebrew,Arabic,andSanskrit.WebsterhopedtostandardizeAmericanspeech,sinceAmericansindifferentpartsofthecountryuseddifferentlanguages.Theyalsospelled,pronounced,andusedEnglishwordsdifferently.Attheageofseventy,Websterpublishedhisdictionaryin1828,registeringthecopyrightonApril14In1840,thesecondeditionwaspublishedintwovolumes.OnMay28,1843,afewdaysafterhehadcompletedrevisinganappendixtothesecondedition,andwithmuchofhiseffortswiththedictionarystillunrecognized,NoahWebsterdied.TitlepageofWebster'sDictionaryoftheEnglishLanguage,circa1830–1840ThoughitnowhasanhonoredplaceinthehistoryofAmericanEnglish,Webster'sfirstdictionaryonlysold2,500copies.Hewasforcedtomortgagehishometodevelopasecondedition,andhislifefromthenonwasplaguedwithdebt.HandwrittendraftsofdictionaryentriesbyWebster