Charles Richardson (1775–1865) was an English teacher,

lexicographer Lexicography is the study of lexicons and the art of compiling dictionaries. It is divided into two separate academic disciplines: * Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionary, dictionaries. * The ...

and linguist.

Life

He was born at Tulse Hill in July 1775 and started a legal career, but left it early for scholarly and literary pursuits. He kept a school on

Clapham Common Clapham Common is a large triangular urban park in Clapham, south London, England. Originally common land for the parishes of Battersea and Clapham, it was converted to parkland under the terms of the Metropolitan Commons Act 1878. It is of gr ...

, and among his pupils there were Charles James Mathews, who assisted Richardson as a copyist, John Mitchell Kemble, and John Maddison Morton, the dramatist. Richardson gave up his school after 1827, and then lived at Lower Tulse Hill, Norwood. Before 1859 he moved to 23 Torrington Square in London. In 1853 a pension of £75 a year was granted to him from the

civil list A civil list is a list of individuals to whom money is paid by the government, typically for service to the state or as honorary pensions. It is a term especially associated with the United Kingdom, and its former colonies and dominions. It was ori ...

. He died at

Feltham Feltham () is a town in West London, England, from Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it became part of the London Borough of Hounslow in 1965. The parliamentary constituency of Feltham and Heston (UK Parliament constituency), Felt ...

on Friday, 6 Oct. 1865, and was buried in his mother's grave at Clapham. A bust of

John Horne Tooke John Horne Tooke (25 June 1736 – 18 March 1812), known as John Horne until 1782 when he added the surname of his friend William Tooke to his own, was an English clergyman, politician and Philology, philologist. Associated with radical proponen ...

University College, London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

, by Francis Leggatt Chantrey, was bequeathed by him.

Works

Richardson was a philologist of the school of John Horne Tooke. In 1815 he published ''Illustrations to English Philology'', consisting of a critical examination of

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson ( – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

's ''

A Dictionary of the English Language ''A Dictionary of the English Language'', sometimes published as ''Johnson's Dictionary'', was published on 15 April 1755 and written by Samuel Johnson. It is among the most influential dictionary, dictionaries in the history of the English la ...

'' and a reply to

Dugald Stewart Dugald Stewart (; 22 November 175311 June 1828) was a Scottish philosopher and mathematician. Today regarded as one of the most important figures of the later Scottish Enlightenment, he was renowned as a populariser of the work of Francis Hutc ...

's criticism of Horne Tooke's ''Diversions of Purley''. The book was reissued in 1826. In 1818 the opening portions of an English lexicon, by Richardson, appeared in the ''

Encyclopædia Metropolitana ''The Encyclopædia Metropolitana'' was an encyclopedic work published in London, from 1817 to 1845, by part publication. In all it came to quarto, 30 vols., having been issued in 59 parts (22,426 pages, 565 plates). Origins Initially the pro ...

''. In 1834 he issued the prospectus of a ''New English Dictionary'', and the work itself was published by William Pickering in parts between January 1835 and the spring of 1837. It was published in volumes, with additional front matter and some omitted words including "retrospect" appended, in April 1837. The dictionary is a republication of the lexicon, with improvements and additions. Richardson's principle was to rely on

etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

. He was severely criticised by

Noah Webster Noah Webster (October 16, 1758 – May 28, 1843) was an American lexicographer, textbook pioneer, English-language spelling reformer, political writer, editor, and author. He has been called the "Father of American Scholarship and Education" ...

in his ''Mistakes and Corrections'' (1837), especially for his ignorance of oriental languages. "Tooke's principle", wrote Webster, "that a word has one meaning, and one only, and that from this all usages must spring, is substantially correct; but he has, in most cases, failed to find that meaning, and you ichardsonhave rarely or never advanced a step beyond him". In quotations from authors the dictionary was far more copious than any previous work of its class in English. Despite many technical failings the work was commended by the '' Quarterly Magazine'' and the ''

Gentleman's Magazine ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' was a monthly magazine founded in London, England, by Edward Cave in January 1731. It ran uninterrupted for almost 200 years, until 1907, ceasing publication altogether in 1922. It was the first to use the term '' ...

''. An abridged single volume edition, without the quotations, appeared in 1839, with a new preface, but uncorrected. He also published a book on the study of language, an explanation of Tooke's ''Diversions of Purley'' (1854). He contributed papers to the ''Gentleman's Magazine'', and wrote essays on 'English Grammar and English Grammarians,' and on 'Fancy and Imagination.'

Family

He married the artist Elizabeth Nasmyth, widow of Daniel Terry the actor, whose son was at his school. Elizabeth ran an artist's school at her house assisted by Anne Nasmyth. The six Nasmyth sisters were all artists and at one time they all moved to live close to each other in

Putney Putney () is an affluent district in southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ...

.J. C. B. Cooksey, ‘Nasmyth family (per. 1788–1884)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 14 May 2017
/ref> Elizabeth died in 1863, and to her daughter Jane he bequeathed his house at Tulse Hill.

References

* *Rowena Fowler: "Text and Meaning in Richardson's Dictionary". In: ''Historical Dictionaries and Historical Dictionary Research'', ed. by Julie Coleman and Anne McDermott. Tübingen 2004, p. 109–118. ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, Charles 1775 births 1865 deaths English lexicographers Linguists of English