Charles Talbut Onions
Encyclopedia
Charles Talbut Onions (10 September 1873 – 8 January 1965) was an English grammar
ian and lexicographer and the fourth editor of the Oxford English Dictionary
.
Born in Edgbaston
, Birmingham, the son of a designer and embosser of metal, Onions early came under the influence of A. J. Smith, the headmaster of the King Edward VI Camp Hill
School, where Onions received his first contact with lexicography. He obtained a London BA in 1892 and an MA in 1895, both while attending Mason College, Birmingham.
James Murray
invited Onions to join the staff of the Oxford English Dictionary at Oxford in 1895, and in 1914 he began independent editorial work with his own assistants. His Shakespeare Glossary was published in 1911, and in 1933 he co-edited the OED Supplement with William Craigie
. Following the death of William Little
in 1922, he assumed the editorship of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
.
Onions served as a fellow and librarian of Magdalen College, Oxford
. He was president of the Philological Society from 1929 to 1933 and was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1938. On completion of the OED, the universities of Oxford, Leeds
, and Birmingham
conferred honorary degrees upon him. Onions was appointed a Commander of the British Empire in 1934. In 1945 he succeeded R. W. Chambers as honorary director of the Early English Text Society
and worked to extend its publishing program. He was editor of Medium Aevum, the journal of the Society for the Study of Medieval Languages and Literature, from its inception in 1932 to 1956. Onions' last twenty years were largely devoted to completing The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology
(1966), which treated over 38,000 words and went to press just prior to his death.
For much of his life, Onions suffered with a stutter. In 1907 he married Angela Blythman (1883–1941), and they had seven sons and three daughters. During World War I, Onions served in British naval intelligence where his knowledge of German proved a significant asset.
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
ian and lexicographer and the fourth editor of the Oxford English Dictionary
Oxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press, is the self-styled premier dictionary of the English language. Two fully bound print editions of the OED have been published under its current name, in 1928 and 1989. The first edition was published in twelve volumes , and...
.
Born in Edgbaston
Edgbaston
Edgbaston is an area in the city of Birmingham in England. It is also a formal district, managed by its own district committee. The constituency includes the smaller Edgbaston ward and the wards of Bartley Green, Harborne and Quinton....
, Birmingham, the son of a designer and embosser of metal, Onions early came under the influence of A. J. Smith, the headmaster of the King Edward VI Camp Hill
King Edward VI Camp Hill
King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys is a grammar school in Kings Heath, Birmingham for ages of 11 to 18 . One of the seven establishments of the Foundation of the Schools of King Edward VI, it is a voluntary aided school, with admission by selective exam...
School, where Onions received his first contact with lexicography. He obtained a London BA in 1892 and an MA in 1895, both while attending Mason College, Birmingham.
James Murray
James Murray (lexicographer)
Sir James Augustus Henry Murray was a Scottish lexicographer and philologist. He was the primary editor of the Oxford English Dictionary from 1879 until his death.-Life and learning:...
invited Onions to join the staff of the Oxford English Dictionary at Oxford in 1895, and in 1914 he began independent editorial work with his own assistants. His Shakespeare Glossary was published in 1911, and in 1933 he co-edited the OED Supplement with William Craigie
William Craigie
Sir William Alexander Craigie was a philologist and a lexicographer.A graduate of the University of St Andrews, he was the third editor of the Oxford English Dictionary and co-editor of the 1933 supplement. From 1916 to 1925 he was also Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the...
. Following the death of William Little
William Little
William Little may refer to:* William Brian Little , founding partner of Forstmann Little & Company, a private equity firm* William Carruthers Little , Ontario farmer and political figure...
in 1922, he assumed the editorship of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, often abbreviated to SOED, is a scaled-down version of the Oxford English Dictionary . It comprises two volumes rather than the twenty needed for the full second edition of the OED...
.
Onions served as a fellow and librarian of Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
. He was president of the Philological Society from 1929 to 1933 and was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1938. On completion of the OED, the universities of Oxford, Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
, and Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
conferred honorary degrees upon him. Onions was appointed a Commander of the British Empire in 1934. In 1945 he succeeded R. W. Chambers as honorary director of the Early English Text Society
Early English Text Society
The Early English Text Society is an organization to reprint early English texts, especially those only available in manuscript. Most of its volumes are in Middle English and Old English...
and worked to extend its publishing program. He was editor of Medium Aevum, the journal of the Society for the Study of Medieval Languages and Literature, from its inception in 1932 to 1956. Onions' last twenty years were largely devoted to completing The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology
The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology
The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology is a notable etymological dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press.-Editions:...
(1966), which treated over 38,000 words and went to press just prior to his death.
For much of his life, Onions suffered with a stutter. In 1907 he married Angela Blythman (1883–1941), and they had seven sons and three daughters. During World War I, Onions served in British naval intelligence where his knowledge of German proved a significant asset.