John Earle (29 January 1824 – 31 January 1903) was a British

Anglo-Saxon language Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Angl ...

scholar. He was twice Rawlinsonian Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

. Earle wrote more than a dozen books and was the author of ''Two Saxon Chronicles Parallel'' (1865), and ''Anglo-Saxon Literature'' (1884). Charles Plummer edited Earle's ''Two Saxon Chronicles Parallel'', producing a ''Revised Text'' with notes, appendices, and glossary in 1892.

Milestones in his life

Earle was born at Elston, Churchstow, S. Devon, on 29 January 1824, the oldest son of John Earle who was a farmer and landowner. Earle was educated at

Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is Colleges of the University of Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title for ...

, where he obtained first-class honors in classics. Earle was elected a

fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

in 1848 and in 1857 became rector of Swanswick, near Bath. In 1863, he married Jane Rolleston, the daughter of Rev. George Rolleston (rector and squire of Maltby, W. Riding, father of

George Rolleston George Rolleston (30 July 1829 – 16 June 1881) was an English physician and zoologist. He was the first Linacre Professor of Anatomy and Physiology to be appointed at the University of Oxford, a post he held from 1860 until his death in 1881. ...

). Earle became a

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Catholic Church, Catholic or Anglicanism , Anglican clergy, a form of canon (priest) , canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in part ...

of Wells, which was a small cathedral city of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, in 1871. His recreations were boating, riding and gardening. Earle held the position of Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford as well as the rectory of Swanswick until his death. His address in the 1903 ''

Who's Who (UK) ''Who's Who'' is a reference work. It has been published annually in the form of a hardback book since 1849, and has been published online since 1999. It has also been published on CD-ROM. It lists, and gives information on, people from around ...

'' is listed as Swanswick Rectory, Bath, 84 Banbury Road, Oxford. He died there on 31 January 1903.

Positions held

*Fellow of Oriel, 1848 *College Tutor, 1852 *Rector of Swanswick (near Bath) 1857 *Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon 1849–1854 *Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon 1876–1903 *Prebendary of Wells since 1871 *Select Preacher, Oxford University, 1873-1874 *Rural Dean of Bath, 1873-1877

Bibliography

*''Gloucester Fragments of St.

Swithun Swithun (or Swithin; ; ; died 863) was an Anglo-Saxon bishop of Winchester and subsequently patron saint of Winchester Cathedral. His historical importance as bishop is overshadowed by his reputation for posthumous miracle-working. Accordin ...

'' (1861) *''Bath, Ancient and Modern'' (1864) *''Two Saxon Chronicles Parallel'' (1865) *''The

Philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

of the English Tongue'' (1871) *''A Book for the Beginner in Anglo-Saxon'' (1877) *''English Plant Names from the Tenth to the Fifteenth Century'' (1880) *''Anglo-Saxon Literature'' (1884) *''A Handbook to the Land Charters'' (1888) *''English Prose: its Elements, History, and Usage'' (1890) *''The Deeds of

Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ) is an Old English poetry, Old English poem, an Epic poetry, epic in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 Alliterative verse, alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and List of translat ...

'' (1892) *''The

Psalter A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the emergence of the book of hours in the Late Middle Ages, psalters were ...

of 1539'' (1894) *''A Simple Grammar of English Now in Use'' (1898) *''The Alfred Jewel: an Historical Essay'' (1901)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Earle, John 1824 births 1903 deaths Anglo-Saxon studies scholars Translators from Old English Linguists from England Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford Rawlinsonian Professors of Anglo-Saxon 19th-century British translators Rolleston family