About
Pierre Athanase Larousse, born October 23, 1817 in Toucy (Yonne) and died January 3, 1875 in Paris, was a French grammarian, lexicographer, and encyclopedist. Son of a blacksmith, he won a scholarship to the teacher training school in Versailles, taught briefly, then moved to Paris in 1840. In 1851, he co-founded the Librairie Larousse et Boyer with Augustin Boyer, publishing progressive textbooks. His Nouveau Dictionnaire de la langue française (1856) was the forerunner of the Petit Larousse. His magnum opus, the Grand Dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle, in 15 volumes (1866-1876), was praised by Victor Hugo and completed posthumously by his nephew Jules Hollier. He founded the publishing house Éditions Larousse, still active.
* 1817-10-23 — † 1875-01-03
Major works
- Nouveau Dictionnaire de la langue française (1856)dictionary
- Grand Dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle (1866-1876)encyclopedic dictionary
Key milestones
- 1851Co-founded Librairie Larousse et Boyer with Augustin Boyer.
- 1863First fascicle of the Grand Dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle issued.
- 1875Died in Paris from a stroke brought on by exhaustion.
Themes
lexicographyencyclopedismeducationFrench languagepublishing
Sources: britannica.com · oxfordreference.com