Robert Cawdrey
Encyclopedia
Robert Cawdrey produced one of the first dictionaries of the English language
, the Table Alphabeticall
, in 1604.
, Rutland
, in 1563. In 1565, Cawdrey was ordained as a deacon
, and 22 October 1571 he was made rector
of South Luffenham
. However, Cawdrey was sympathetic to Puritan
teachings, and got in trouble with the Church authorities. In 1576 he was chastised for not reading the approved texts in his sermons, and in 1578 he performed a marriage even though he was not authorized to do so, and was briefly suspended. His suspension lasted only a few months but, in 1586, he was again in trouble for violating the rules and was called before his bishop
, Richard Howland
. He had powerful friends who tried to defend him, but he lost his rectory and had to return to teaching to support himself.
, Robert Cawdrey decided to create an instructional text; the Table Alphabeticall
, which appeared in 1604 when Cawdrey was living in Coventry
.
As many new words were entering the English language in the 16th century, Cawdrey became concerned that people would become confused. Cawdrey worried that the wealthy were adopting foreign words and phrases, and wrote that "they forget altogether their mothers language, so that if some of their mothers were alive, they were not able to tell or vnderstand what they say." He also described how "far journied gentlemen" learn new words while in foreign lands, and then "pouder their talke with over-sea language."
Thomas Cawdrey worked on improvements to the Table Alphabeticall.
While he was a rector, Robert Cawdrey wrote A Short and Fruitefull Treatise of the Profit of Catechising in 1580. He revised this work and published a second edition in 1604. Cawdrey also published A Treasurie or Store-House of Similes in 1600, and again in 1609.
(ca. 1588-1664) was a Puritan minister.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, the Table Alphabeticall
Table Alphabeticall
A Table Alphabeticall is the abbreviated title of the first monolingual dictionary in the English language, created by Robert Cawdrey and first published in London in 1604....
, in 1604.
Career
Robert Cawdrey did not go to college, but became a school teacher in OakhamOakham
-Oakham's horseshoes:Traditionally, members of royalty and peers of the realm who visited or passed through the town had to pay a forfeit in the form of a horseshoe...
, Rutland
Rutland
Rutland is a landlocked county in central England, bounded on the west and north by Leicestershire, northeast by Lincolnshire and southeast by Peterborough and Northamptonshire....
, in 1563. In 1565, Cawdrey was ordained as a deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
, and 22 October 1571 he was made rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of South Luffenham
South Luffenham
South Luffenham is a village in the county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England.The village lies largely on the north side of the A6121 road from Uppingham to Stamford. It is divided into two by a small stream, the Foss, which is a tributary of the River Chater...
. However, Cawdrey was sympathetic to Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
teachings, and got in trouble with the Church authorities. In 1576 he was chastised for not reading the approved texts in his sermons, and in 1578 he performed a marriage even though he was not authorized to do so, and was briefly suspended. His suspension lasted only a few months but, in 1586, he was again in trouble for violating the rules and was called before his bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
, Richard Howland
Richard Howland
Richard Howland was an English churchman and academic, Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge and of St John's College, Cambridge and bishop of Peterborough.-Life:...
. He had powerful friends who tried to defend him, but he lost his rectory and had to return to teaching to support himself.
Writing
With the assistance of his son Thomas Cawdrey (1575–1640), who was a school teacher in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Robert Cawdrey decided to create an instructional text; the Table Alphabeticall
Table Alphabeticall
A Table Alphabeticall is the abbreviated title of the first monolingual dictionary in the English language, created by Robert Cawdrey and first published in London in 1604....
, which appeared in 1604 when Cawdrey was living in Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
.
As many new words were entering the English language in the 16th century, Cawdrey became concerned that people would become confused. Cawdrey worried that the wealthy were adopting foreign words and phrases, and wrote that "they forget altogether their mothers language, so that if some of their mothers were alive, they were not able to tell or vnderstand what they say." He also described how "far journied gentlemen" learn new words while in foreign lands, and then "pouder their talke with over-sea language."
Thomas Cawdrey worked on improvements to the Table Alphabeticall.
While he was a rector, Robert Cawdrey wrote A Short and Fruitefull Treatise of the Profit of Catechising in 1580. He revised this work and published a second edition in 1604. Cawdrey also published A Treasurie or Store-House of Similes in 1600, and again in 1609.
A Table Alphabeticall
The full name of his famous dictionary is A table alphabeticall conteyning and teaching the true writing, and understanding of hard vsuall English wordes, borrowed from the Hebrew, Greeke, Latine, or French, &c. With the interpretation thereof by plaine English words, gathered for the benefit & helpe of ladies, gentlewomen, or any other unskilfull persons. Whereby they may the more easilie and better vnderstand many hard English wordes, vvhich they shall heare or read in scriptures, sermons, or elswhere, and also be made able to vse the same aptly themselues.Life
Robert Cawdrey had many sons. His youngest son Daniel CawdryDaniel Cawdry
Daniel Cawdry was an English clergyman, member of the Westminster Assembly, and ejected minister of 1662.-Life:He was the youngest son of Robert Cawdry, and was educated at Sidney Sussex College and Peterhouse, Cambridge. From about 1617 to 1625 he was rector of Little Ilford...
(ca. 1588-1664) was a Puritan minister.
Further reading
- Brent L. Nelson, "The Social Context of Rhetoric, 1500-1660," The Dictionary of Literary Biography, Volume 281: British Rhetoricians and Logicians, 1500-1660, Second Series, Detroit: Gale, 2003, pp. 355–377.
- Janet Bately, ‘Cawdrey, Robert (b. 1537/8?, d. in or after 1604)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 23 Sept 2008
External links
- The full Table Alphabeticall on University of Toronto Libraries site.