October 16th is National Dictionary Day #NationalDictionaryDay I don’t know about you but even with the Internet and being able to look up the meanings of words I still have physical dictionaries in my home.
When Charlie was #Homeschooling we used them on a weekly basis with Charlie’s spelling words. The funny part is we still have Charlie’s first dictionary from his Aunt Judy when he was 6 or 7 for his Birthday. I kept the #dictionary so Charlie can hand it down to his children.
Although by then dictionary’s may be obsolete and not anything Charlie would want to give his children. I wonder if I should donate the dictionary to a local school although I wonder if they would have any use for a dictionary. What do you think?
Dictionary Day on October 16th celebrates the birth of Noah Webster, an American writer who was born in 1758. Noah Webster is best-known for publishing the first dictionary in 1806, which Noah Webster continued to compile and expand for the next 27 years.
When Noah Webster’s dictionary was published in 1828, it was a formidable resource packed with useful words and spelling updates. Webster was a true pioneer for creating the reference book we use , so we’re celebrating Noah Webster today!
The man who would someday become the father of the dictionary as we know it today, Noah Webster, was born on October 16, 1758, in Hartford, Connecticut. Noah Webber’s father, a farmer and craftsman, and his mother, who stayed at home, headed a very middle-class and typical Colonial family. When scholarly young Noah was 16, he set off for Yale — the first college in Connecticut. Since law was too expensive of a career path, Noah Webster chose to go into teaching.
It was in teaching that Noah Webber first felt compelled to reform the burgeoning American academic system and language. Noah Webber’s first textbook was issued in 1783 and covered the grammar of the English language. Due to its blue cover, it came to be known as the “Blue-Backed Speller.” This little blue book became the most popular book in America in the day and age.
Refining teaching English and the education system wasn’t enough for Noah. After marrying Rebecca Greenleaf in 1789, Noah Webber set about in 1801 to define many of the terms that set apart American English from the way the language was spoken in England. Noah Webber also moved to Amherst, Massachusetts for the purpose of founding Amherst College, then later moved back to New Haven.
Many of us are familiar with the spelling differences between English and American English words like ‘color.’ Much of that can be credited to Noah Webster, who, in his first edition of the American English dictionary in 1806, took time to correct English spellings to American English ones.
Another example: Webster re-spelled ‘musick’ as ‘music.’ Though this bestselling dictionary defined no less than 37,000 words, Noah Webber was unsatisfied. The next 22 years of his life would be dedicated to editing and adding new words. Eventually, at the old age of 70, Webster published his new dictionary in 1828. The book defined over 65,000 words.
After Noah Webster died in 1843 as an American hero who pioneered the dictionary and supported both the abolition of slavery and universal education, G & C Merriam, Co. purchased the rights to his “An American Dictionary of the English Language”. The Merriam brothers behind the company, George and Charles, continued to refine Webster’s dictionary, eventually giving us the Merriam-Webster dictionary we know today.
Dictionary Day Activities
- A word-based game like Scrabble is one of the best ways to honor the dictionary! You couldn’t play ‘whiz-bang’ for 77 devastating points without the dictionary to help you get there.
- I have a question for you. How long has it been since you’ve held a dictionary in your hands? For most people I would think it was probably in grade school. With so much accessible information online, we miss the physical book and the smell of the pages, the sound of the pages turning. Grab and open a dictionary and rifle through it to learn something new!
- Noah Webster deserves all the credit for making such a fantastically useful resource book. Post #NationalDictionaryDay, and ask everyone to take the opportunity to learn a new word or two in Noah Webber’s honor.
Interesting Facts About Noah & The Dictionary
- In order to write his uniquely American first dictionary, Noah Webster learned 26 new languages!
- After the Merriam brothers revised Webster’s work in the mid-1800s, they sold the dictionaries for $6 apiece.
- Noah Webster is credited with setting up the New York City’s first daily newspaper, “American Minerva,” to later become “Commercial Advertiser.”
- From being one of the earliest opponents of slavery(and secretary of the Hartford Anti-Slavery Society to examining evidence and debating the existence of global warming, Webster was very involved in the important social issues of the day.
- T.S. Eliot, the renowned poet, was the great-nephew of Noah Webster doesn’t this seem like a great command of the English language and literature ran in the family.
Why People Love Dictionary Day
- Most obviously, the dictionary is a fantastic resource for new words. For centuries now, the dictionary has been used to define the English language, and given us a common rulebook for communication. Practically any time you flip to a new page in the dictionary, you learn something new!
- f you don’t know the history of the dictionary, today is a great day to do some research. Noah Webster was a prolific Author and textbook pioneer who ultimately left his impact upon the English language. National Dictionary Day is the best day to honor Noah Webber’s memory and learn his history.
- Besides adding words to the standard English language, Noah Webster helped define and change spellings of old English words that needed to be adapted for the new era. Noah Webbe actively pruned and grew the English language that we know today!
Thank you,,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
