THE MINISTRY OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND

INNOVATIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN

TERMEZ STATE UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE

COURSE WORK
ON THE THEME

“Noah Webster and American language”

DONE BY: THE 4th COURSE

STUDENT: SHAYDULLAEV SHOKHJAKHON
SUPERVISOR: SAFAROVA D.A

TERMEZ– 2023
 THEME: Noah Webster and American language
Plan:

1. Introduction
2. Main parts
American lexicographer-Noah Webster………………………………………….5
Noah Webster’s Influence on American English…………………………..........8
American dictionary of the English language………………………………13
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….18
References……………………………………………………………………….20
 Introduction
Written forms of American and British English as found in newspapers and
textbooks vary little in their essential features, with only occasional noticeable
differences in comparable media (comparing American newspapers to British
newspapers, for example). This kind of formal English, particularly written
English, is often called 'standard English'. An unofficial standard for spoken
American English has also developed, as a result of mass media and geographic
and social mobility. It is typically referred to as 'standard spoken American
English' (SSAE) or 'General American English' (GenAm or GAE), and broadly
describes the English typically heard from network newscasters, although local
newscasters tend toward more parochial forms of speech. Despite this unofficial
standard, regional variations of American English have not only persisted but have
actually intensified, according to linguist William Labov.
British and American English are the reference norms for English as spoken,
written, and taught in the rest of the world. For instance, the English-speaking
members of the Commonwealth often closely follow British English forms while
many new American English forms quickly become familiar outside of the United
States. Although the dialects of English used in the former British Empire are
often, to various extents, based on British English, most of the countries concerned
have developed their own unique dialects, particularly with respect to
pronunciation, idioms, and vocabulary; chief among them are Canadian English
and Australian English, which rank third and fourth in number of native speakers.
The English language was first introduced to the Americas by British
colonization, beginning in the early 17th century. Similarly, the language spread to
numerous other parts of the world as a result of British trade and colonization
elsewhere and the spread of the former British Empire, which, by 1921, held sway
over a population of about 470-570 million people: approximately a quarter of the
world's population at that time.
Over the past 400 years, the form of the language used in the Americas--
especially in the United States--and that used in the United Kingdom and the
British Islands have diverged in many ways, leading to the dialects now commonly
referred to as American English and British English. Differences between the two
include pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary (lexis), spelling, punctuation, idioms,
formatting of dates and numbers, and so on, although the differences in written and
most spoken grammar structure tend to be much more minor than those of other
aspects of the language in terms of mutual intelligibility. A small number of words
have completely different meanings between the two dialects or are even unknown
or not used in one of the dialects. One particular contribution towards formalizing
these differences came from Noah Webster, who wrote the first American
dictionary (published 1828) with the intention of showing that people in the United
States spoke a different dialect from Britain. This 1828 facsimile reprint of the
first American Dictionary documents the quality of Biblical education which raised
up American statesmen capable of forming our Constitutional Republic. Webster
traced roots in twenty-six languages, and gives examples from classical literature
and the Bible. Comprehensive introductions are presented for language and
grammar. It has been described by one Christian scholar as "the greatest reprint of
the twentieth century." The added biography by Rosalie Slater, "Noah Webster,
Founding Father of American Scholarship and Education," describes his
contribution to many fields and records his conversion to Christ
 American lexicographer-Noah Webster
Noah Webster, (born October 16, 1758, West Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.—
died May 28, 1843, New Haven, Connecticut), American lexicographer known for
his American Spelling Book and his American Dictionary of the English
Language. Webster was instrumental in giving American English a dignity and
vitality of its own. Both his speller and dictionary reflected his principle that
spelling, grammar, and usage should be based upon the living, spoken
language rather than on artificial rules. He also made useful contributions as a
teacher, grammarian, journalist, essayist, lecturer, and lobbyist.
Webster entered Yale in 1774, interrupted his studies to serve briefly in
the American Revolution, and was graduated in 1778. He taught school, did
clerical work, and studied law, being admitted to the bar in 1781.
While teaching in Goshen, New York, in 1782, Webster became dissatisfied with
texts for children that ignored the American culture, and he began his lifelong
efforts to promote a distinctively American education. His first step in this
direction was preparation of A Grammatical Institute of the English Language, the
first part being The American Spelling Book , the famed “Blue-Backed Speller,”
which has never been out of print. The spelling book provided much of Webster’s
income for the rest of his life, and its total sales have been estimated as high as
100,000,000 copies or more. In 1806, Webster published his first dictionary, A
Compendious Dictionary of the English Language.
The following year, he started working on an expanded and comprehensive
dictionary, finally publishing it in 1828. He was very influential in popularizing
certain spellings in the United States. He was also influential in establishing
the Copyright Act of 1831, the first major statutory revision of U.S. copyright
law.Whilst working on a second volume of his dictionary, Webster died in 1843,
and the rights to the dictionary were acquired by George and Charles Merriam1

1
H.L. Mencken’s 1926 Britannica essay on American English.
 Webster was born in the Western Division of Hartford (which became West
Hartford, Connecticut) to an established family. His birthplace is the Noah
Webster House which highlights Webster's life and is the headquarters of the West
Hartford Historical Society. His father Noah Webster Sr. (1722–1813) was a
descendant of Connecticut Governor John Webster; his mother Mercy (Steele)
Webster (1727–1794) was a descendant of Governor William
Bradford of Plymouth Colony. His father was primarily a farmer, though he was
also deacon of the local Congregational church, captain of the town's militia, and a
founder of a local book society (a precursor to the public library). After American
independence, he was appointed a justice of the peace. Webster's father never
attended college, but he was intellectually curious and prized education. Webster's
mother spent long hours teaching her children spelling, mathematics, and music.
At age six, Webster began attending a dilapidated one-room primary school
built by West Hartford's Ecclesiastical Society. Years later, he described the
teachers as the "dregs of humanity" and complained that the instruction was mainly
in religion. Webster's experiences there motivated him to improve the educational
experience of future generations. At age fourteen, his church pastor began tutoring
him in Latin and Greek to prepare him for entering Yale College.[10] Webster
enrolled at Yale just before his 16th birthday, studying during his senior year
with Ezra Stiles, Yale's president. He also was a member of the secret
society, Brothers in Unity. His four years at Yale overlapped the American
Revolutionary War and, because of food shortages and the possibility of British
invasion, many of his classes had to be held in other towns. Webster served in the
Connecticut Militia. His father had mortgaged the farm to send Webster to Yale,
but he was now on his own and had nothing more to do with his family.
Webster lacked career plans after graduating from Yale in 1779, later writing
that a liberal arts education "disqualifies a man for business”.2 He taught school
briefly in Glastonbury, but the working conditions were harsh and the pay low.

2
Kendall, p. 54
 He quit to study law. While studying law under future U.S. Supreme Court
Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth, Webster also taught full-time in Hartford—which
was grueling, and ultimately impossible to continue. He quit his legal studies for a
year and lapsed into a depression; he then found another practicing attorney to
tutor him, and completed his studies and passed the bar examination in 1781. As
the Revolutionary War was still going on, he could not find work as a lawyer. He
received a master's degree from Yale by giving an oral dissertation to the Yale
graduating class. Later that year, he opened a small private school in western
Connecticut that was a success. Nevertheless, he soon closed it and left town,
probably because of a failed romance.
Turning to literary work as a way to overcome his losses and channel his
ambitions, he began writing a series of well-received articles for a prominent New
England newspaper justifying and praising the American Revolution and arguing
that the separation from Britain would be a permanent state of affairs. He then
founded a private school catering to wealthy parents in Goshen, New York and, by
1785, he had written his speller, a grammar book and a reader for elementary
schools. Proceeds from continuing sales of the popular blue-backed speller
enabled Webster to spend many years working on his famous dictionary. Webster
was by nature a revolutionary, seeking American independence from the cultural
thralldom to Europe. To replace it, he sought to create a utopian America, cleansed
of luxury and ostentation and the champion of freedom. By 1781, Webster had an
expansive view of the new nation. American nationalism was superior to Europe
because American values were superior, he claimed.
America sees the absurdities—she sees the kingdoms of Europe, disturbed
by wrangling sectaries, or their commerce, population and improvements of every
kind cramped and retarded, because the human mind like the body is fettered 'and
bound fast by the chords of policy and superstition': She laughs at their folly and
shuns their errors: She founds her empire upon the idea of universal toleration: She
admits all religions into her bosom; She secures the sacred rights of every
individual; and (astonishing absurdity to Europeans!) she sees a thousand
discordant opinions live in the strictest harmony ... it will finally raise her to a pitch
of greatness and lustre, before which the glory of ancient Greece and Rome shall
dwindle to a point, and the splendor of modern Empires fade into obscurity.
Webster dedicated his Speller and Dictionary to providing an intellectual
foundation for American nationalism. From 1787 to 1789, Webster was an
outspoken supporter of the new Constitution. In October 1787, he wrote a
pamphlet entitled "An Examination into the Leading Principles of the Federal
Constitution Proposed by the Late Convention Held at Philadelphia", published
under the pen name "A Citizen of America". The pamphlet was influential,
particularly outside New York State.
In terms of political theory, he de-emphasized virtue (a core value
of republicanism) and emphasized widespread ownership of property (a key
element of Federalism). He was one of the few Americans who paid much
attention to French theorist Jean-Jacques Rousseau. It was not Rousseau's politics
but his ideas on pedagogy in Emile (1762) that influenced Webster in adjusting
his Speller to the stages of a child's development.
 Noah Webster’s Influence on American English
The three-fold concern of this study is Noah Webster’s influence on spelling
reform, his influence on lexicography, and his influence on the language deriving
from patriotism. Though Webster had about him a dogged pertinacity and a quality
of temperament that lent itself well to controversy, causing him once to be styled
the “critic and coxcomb general of the United States” his phenomenal success and
popularity are attested by the fact that his name has become synonymous with
English dictionaries in the United States. He receives homage in such uncritical
expressions as “As the dictionary says,” “According to Webster” and the honorific
“As Mr. Webster says.” Along with Ever sharp, Kodak, Frigidaire, Kleenex, and
other trade names that now function as synecdoche, Noah Webster’s name has
been received as an alternate term for any product similar in function to that of
Noah Webster’s. Though Webster’s name is now more likely first associated with
his dictionary, his first contribution to American English was not his dictionary.
Schooled at Yale to be a lawyer, Webster found himself teaching school and
while teaching perceived the inadequacy of the texts then available for instructing
his pupils in English grammar and usage. Nothing daunted by the fact that his
training may not have matched his enthusiasm for the task, he prepared a work
which was a speller, a grammar, and a reader under what Baugh calls the “high-
sounding title”, A Grammatical Institute of the English Language.
Though Webster is probably responsible for naming another of his works
Dissertations on the English Language, he is not responsible for the pompous title
of the earlier work. H. C. Commager says that President Ezra Stiles of Yale
“dictated” the title Grammatical Noah Webster’s Influence Institute of the English
Language, Webster having intended The American Instructor as the title. Nor was
other support from his alma mater lacking. At a later stage in Webster’s career, Dr.
Goodrich, trustee of Yale, encouraged Webster to continue his linguistic interests.
Since this advice came after the publication of the Blue Backed Speller,
which sold approximately eighty million copies within a hundred years, it is
unlikely that the advice, though undoubtedly appreciated, was responsible for
Webster’s continuing. In 1789 he published Dissertations on the English
Language with Notes Historical and Critical, and in 1806 he published a
Dictionary which was to be, as Baugh writes, “preliminary to An American
Dictionary of the English Language (1828), his greatest work.”6 The depth and
breadth of Noah Webster’s learning receive somewhat divergent assessments at
the hands of different scholars.
Harry Warfel says that Webster in order “to buttress his arguments (for some
of his unpopular views on language) scanned every available writing on language.
And thus the schoolmaster became the scholar, the first thorough student of the
English language in America.” In Thomas Pyles’ hands, however, Webster gets a
treatment similar to that received by Milton at the hands of Dr. Johnson. Pyles
comments on Webster’s recommendations on usage. Though Webster was hardly
deferential to contemporary usage in determining his recommendations about
language matters, he approved such expressions as “It is me,” “Who is she married
to,” and “them horses.” Webster backed up his approval of “them horses” with the
German “in dem Himmel, which he said meant “in them heavens,” German being
“our parent language.” Pyles remarks sharply on Webster’s ignorance of German.
Webster’s influence on spelling reform, the first major division of this study,
derives as much from his dictionary as from his other.
In terms of chronology, however, the speller precedes the dictionary. A
chronological rather than a logical basis accounts for my treating Webster’s
influence on spelling reform before treating his influence on lexicography, because
the publication of his dictionary both continued and reinforced the influence on
spelling reform begun by the speller. The number of spelling reformers since Orm
and his Ormulum has been legion. During almost any year, most newspaper editors
will write at least one editorial favoring spelling reform, and many will propose
their own new systems for spelling.

Benjamin Franklin, George Bernard Shaw, and Theodore Roosevelt have

been interested in spelling reform. Some of the systems proposed would require
more effort to learn and to apply than mastering the International Phonetic
Alphabet. William Watt cites Dr. Godfrey Dewey’s “simplified spelling” for the
opening lines of the “Gettysburg Address”: “Forskor and sevn yeerz agoe our
faadherz braut forth on dhis kontinent a nue naeshun konseeved in liberti, and
dedikaeted to the propezeshun dhat aul men ar kreated eekwal.” Compared with
the average proponent of spelling reform over the years, Webster has had a rather
good record. Mathews says that Webster did not know that spelling ranks right
along with religion as something people are sensitive about changing.
Nevertheless, according to Mathews, Webster’s efforts at reform compared
with those of predecessors and contemporaries are “very sound and commendable”
according to Kemp Malone, Webster’s success in spelling reform is attested by the
fact that we have “civilize, not civilise; honor, not honour" and the principle that
“verbs ending in a short vowel plus a single consonant when stressed on the last
syllable, double the consonant in certain inflexional forms and derivatives, but
when stressed on any other syllable do not so double the consonant. In England
the consonant is doubled whatever the stress.” Mathews lists the following
spellings which met with Webster’s approval: “ake, crum, fether, honor, iland, ile
(for aisle), theater, and wether."
It is a delicate matter to correct people’s spelling or pronunciation, and
Webster was, according to Waffel, aware of the fact that in telling people how to
“correct their pronunciation” he was inviting abuse. Webstersaid some people will
“sooner dismiss their friends than their prejudices.” In one of his “Dissertations”on
the English language, Webster said that his position as one correcting is “delicate
and embarrassing,” for “to attack established customs is always hazardous.” Pyles
cites the “petition for a copyright” for one of Webster’s works which stated the
following purpose: “To reform the abuses and corruptions which, to an unhappy
degree tincture the conversation of the polite part of the Americans ... and... to
render the pronunciation accurate and uniform ”.
The publication of Webster’s Dictionary not only exerted a continuing
influence on spelling reform and pronunciation, but it also had a significant
influence on lexicography. A consideration of Webster’s influence on lexicography
is the next concern of this study. Webster’s competence as a lexicographer has
been the subject of dispute, and the judgments of him diverge rather sharply.
Webster is at times praised but at others condemned. Warfel says, for example, that
in the preparation of his dictionary Webster “became a profound student of
linguistics, and he developed interesting theories of the relationship of languages.”
Admitting that some of Webster’s ideas were untenable, Warfel points out that
Webster himself later discarded many of these ideas and that “more of Webster’s
conclusions remain tenable today than any scholar has taken pains to report”.
Mencken scores Webster for his “blunder of deriving all languages from the
Hebrew of the Ark” but credits him with perceiving the “relationship between
Greek, Latin, and the Teutonic languages before it was generally recognized.”
Furthermore, though he could not “pass as a philologian now,” he was “extremely
well read for his time.” Pyles comments on Webster’s delinquency in deriving all
languages from Chaldee (Biblical Aramaic) which Webster called “the parent of all
languages.” Pyles represents Webster as running around his special “semicircular
desk," consulting books in various languages for fleeting moments, and acquiring
what knowledge he had of the twenty-three languages of which he was the self-
taught master. Webster “set out to prepare a synopsis of the twenty-three
languages, not to mention ‘the early dialects of the English and German,’ which he
is supposed to have learned.”
Pyles adds that Webster’s knowledge of Old English was inferior to that of
Thomas Jefferson, though Jefferson considered himself an amateur, Pyles
indicating that Webster’s knowledge of Old English was similar to that one would
expect from “a beginning graduate student.” If Webster was delinquent in his
etymologies—and Pyles, no uncritical admirer of Webster, says that “subsequent
editors have without comment excised by the basketful Webster’s etymological
‘boners’ ” he is nevertheless accorded praise by Sir James Murray, who calls
Webster a “born definer of words.” Moreover, though Mathews often finds
Webster’s etymologies to be deficient, he nonetheless finds “far more of Webster’s
etymologies were correct than those of any lexicographer who had preceded him.
He made many mistakes, but he got many things right.” Webster was
attacked for the vocabulary of his dictionary. Since his word stock was larger than
that of previous dictionaries, Mathews says that the “five thousand additional
words were branded as Americanisms or vulgarisms” by those who considered
Webster presumptuous in increasing the number. It is as dangerous to alter the
mythical total stock of words in the language as it is to trifle with sacrosanct
spellings and pronunciations.
 American dictionary of the English language
An American Dictionary of the English Language, (1828), two-
volume dictionary by the American lexicographer Noah Webster. He began work
on it in 1807 and completed it in France and England in 1824–25, producing a two-
volume lexicon containing 12,000 words and 30,000 to 40,000 definitions that had
not appeared in any earlier dictionary. Because it was based on the principle that
word usage should evolve from the spoken language, the work was attacked for its
“Americanism,” or unconventional preferences in spelling and usage, as well as for
its inclusion of nonliterary words, especially technical terms in the arts and
sciences. Despite harsh criticism, the work sold out, 2,500 copies in the United
States and 3,000 in England, in little over a year. It was relatively unpopular
thereafter, however, despite the appearance of the second, corrected edition in
1840; and the rights were sold in 1843 by the Webster estate to George and
Charles Merriam. Noah Webster wrote the first dictionary of American English. It
was a radical attempt to foster a uniform language for the United States.
Webster's first edition in 1828 contained about 70,000 entries -- some 12,000
more than had appeared in earlier vocabulary lists. Webster added many technical
and scientific terms, included common Americanisms, and suggested new ways of
spelling and pronouncing words In 1806, Webster published his first dictionary, A
Compendious Dictionary of the English Language. The following year, he started
working on an expanded and comprehensive dictionary, finally publishing it in
1828. He was very influential in popularizing certain spellings in the United States
It’s twilight time for printed dictionaries, whose word-filled bulk weighed down
desks, held open doors and by turns inspired and intimidated writers searching for
the perfect word. Lexicography — the making of dictionaries — has gone digital.
Though a few are still published, the dictionary’s time as printed, bound
documents is almost up. In this meantime, Joe Janes turns the attention of
his Documents that Changed the World podcast series to the man as firmly
identified with dictionaries as Hershey is with chocolate, Noah Webster, and the
70,000-word “American Dictionary of the English language” he published in 1828.
It was one of the last dictionaries to be compiled by a single person. Documents
that Changed the World: Noah Webster’s dictionary, 1828 In the podcasts, Janes,
an associate professor in the UW Information School, explores the origin and often
evolving meaning of historical documents, both famous and less known. All the
podcasts are available online through the iSchool website, and on iTunes, where
the series has more than 250,000 downloads.
Webster, who lived from 1758 to 1843, was at times a failed farmer, an
uninspired teacher, a state representative, a co-founder of Amherst College, a
copyright advocate and a friend of George Washington once dubbed by biographer
as a “forgotten founding father.” He was also a Federalist and dedicated
revolutionary who deeply loved his country. Though the first English dictionary
dates back to 1604, it was Webster and his 1828 volume that was credited with
capturing the language of the new nation. Janes said, “This dictionary was the first
serious articulation of American English as it was growing increasingly distinct
from the British variety.” And that was clearly Webster’s intention, as stated in the
dictionary’s preface: “Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one
country cannot preserve an identity of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of
language.” 3
Webster was also enthusiastic about spelling reform, Janes notes. “He had
more luck there than most; we have him to thank for Americanized spellings of
‘favor,’ and ‘theater’ and ‘defense'” as well as the word “Americanize” itself,”
Janes says. “But he didn’t get away with ‘tung,’ ‘ake’ or dropping the final ‘e’
from words like ‘doctrine.” Words define languages, Janes says, and in turn
languages help to define cultures and societies. “And people define words, as the
last man who tried to define them all himself knew — in the process trying also to
define and distinguish his developing nation.”
It was just 194 years ago today, April 14, 1828, when Noah Webster
registered the copyright for his American Dictionary. Webster was a lexicographer,
meaning a person who studies lexicons, or languages. Now, this is not the first

3
Documents that Changed the World: Noah Webster’s dictionary, 1828 Peter Kelley
English dictionary, nor the only one in circulation to-date; however, I’ll chance the
notion that many of you have heard of the Webster’s Dictionary. Sadly, old Noah
did not fare well in life, and died in debt, with very few copies of his first edition
selling. But what about that name before Webster’s, Merriam? Well now, that is
perhaps the more American success story that one craves for.
George and Charles Merriam, brothers growing up in a small farming
family, opened up their own publishing company. After the death of Noah, they
bought all the rights to his dictionary, and simply added their name to it, and thus,
Merriam – Webster’s Dictionary became an American household name, and it all
began with Webster’s registered copyright, 194 years ago, today. First edition of
this landmark work. Quarto, two volumes, bound in full period-style calf, morocco
spine label, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panel. In near fine
condition, light toning to the text. A very nice example.
In 1807 Webster began compiling a fully comprehensive dictionary, An
American Dictionary of the English Language; it took twenty-eight years to
complete. To evaluate the etymology of words, Webster learned twenty-six
languages, including Old English (Anglo-Saxon), Greek, Hebrew and Latin.
Webster completed his dictionary during his year abroad in 1825 in Paris, France,
and at the University of Cambridge. His book contained seventy thousand words,
of which twelve thousand had never appeared in a published dictionary before. As
a spelling reformer, Webster believed that English spelling rules were
unnecessarily complex, so his dictionary introduced American English spellings,
replacing colour with color, substituting wagon for waggon, and printing center
instead of center. He also added American words, like skunk and squash, that did
not appear in British dictionaries. At the age of seventy, Webster published his
dictionary in 1828, registering the copyright on April 14. Webster did all this in an
effort to standardize the American language. “This dictionary, which almost at
once became, and has remained, the standard English dictionary in the United
States, was the end-product of a stream of spelling books, grammars, readers, and
dcitionaries which flowed from the pen of the industrious Noah Webster.
 Webster’s great dictionary, all the 70,000 entries of which he wrote with his
own hand, has been reprinted and brought up to date innumerable times the book
marked a definite advance in modern lexicography, as it included many non-
literary terms and paid great attention to the language actually spoken. Moreover,
his definitions of the meaning of words were accurate and concise and have for the
greater part stood the test of time superbly well” (Printing and the Mind of Man).4

4
New York: Published by S. Converse. Printed by Hezekiah Howe, 1828.
 Conclusion
Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language will
enrich your understanding of the English language and is a invaluable tool for
daily study. This beautiful and durable dictionary is essential for scholars, students,
home educating families, pastors, educators or anyone conducting in-depth
research and is a necessity in any home. The dictionary presents definitions in a
clear manner with comprehensive explanations, often excluded from modern
dictionaries. It defines words using their full etymology, tracing roots in 26
languages and explains meanings using examples from literature, historic
documents, the Bible and other classic sources. It is also a valuable primary source
document for historians and legal scholars, since it reflects English usage during
America’s founding generation.
This tool can be the turning point for you to be more effective in
communicating Christian principles used in government, economics, and
marketing, or for your student to clearly understand how the Bible has influenced
every area of life. It will strengthen your vocabulary, equip you for Christian
leadership, give you an edge in communicating your view and become an
indispensable tool for thinking and reasoning Biblically. “Why Every American
Christian Home Should Have the Noah Webster 1828 Dictionary.” The facsimile
edition includes Volume I and Volume II of Webster’s original dictionary, plus a
biography of Noah Webster. This hardcover edition features a green vellum
hardcover with a gold stamped, embossed eagle designed by Paul Revere and is
2,000 pages. Webster was born in the Western Division of Hartford (which
became West Hartford, Connecticut) to an established family. His birthplace is
the Noah Webster House which highlights Webster's life and is the headquarters of
the West Hartford Historical Society. His father Noah Webster Sr. (1722–1813)
was a descendant of Connecticut Governor John Webster; his mother Mercy
(Steele) Webster (1727–1794) was a descendant of Governor William
Bradford of Plymouth Colony. His father was primarily a farmer, though he was
also deacon of the local Congregational church, captain of the town's militia, and a
founder of a local book society (a precursor to the public library). After American
independence, he was appointed a justice of the peace. Webster's father never
attended college, but he was intellectually curious and prized education. Webster's
mother spent long hours teaching her children spelling, mathematics, and music.
In this meantime, Joe Janes turns the attention of his Documents that
Changed the World podcast series to the man as firmly identified with dictionaries
as Hershey is with chocolate, Noah Webster, and the 70,000-word “American
Dictionary of the English language” he published in 1828. It was one of the last
dictionaries to be compiled by a single person. Documents that Changed the
World: Noah Webster’s dictionary, 1828 In the podcasts, Janes, an associate
professor in the UW Information School, explores the origin and often evolving
meaning of historical documents, both famous and less known. All the podcasts are
available online through the iSchool website, and on iTunes, where the series has
more than 250,000 downloads.
Webster, who lived from 1758 to 1843, was at times a failed farmer, an
uninspired teacher, a state representative, a co-founder of Amherst College, a
copyright advocate and a friend of George Washington once dubbed by biographer
as a “forgotten founding father.” He was also a Federalist and dedicated
revolutionary who deeply loved his country. Though the first English dictionary
dates back to 1604, it was Webster and his 1828 volume that was credited with
capturing the language of the new nation. Janes said, “This dictionary was the first
serious articulation of American English as it was growing increasingly distinct
from the British variety.” And that was clearly Webster’s intention, as stated in the
dictionary’s preface: “Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one
country cannot preserve an identity of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of
language.” 5
Webster was also enthusiastic about spelling reform, Janes notes. “He had
more luck there than most; we have him to thank for Americanized spellings of
‘favor,’ and ‘theater’ and ‘defense'” as well as the word “Americanize” itself,”

5
Documents that Changed the World: Noah Webster’s dictionary, 1828 Peter Kelley
Janes says. “But he didn’t get away with ‘tung,’ ‘ake’ or dropping the final ‘e’
from words like ‘doctrine.” Words define languages, Janes says, and in turn
languages help to define cultures and societies. “And people define words, as the
last man who tried to define them all himself knew — in the process trying also to
define and distinguish his developing nation.”

References
1. Dobbs, Christopher. "Noah Webster and the Dream of a Common
Language". Noah Webster and the Dream of a Common Language.
Connecticut Humanities. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
2. "Connecticut Births and Christenings, 1649-1906". FamilySearch.
3. Retrieved July 24, 2015.
4. American Reformers: Early/Mid 1800s: Noah Webster. "[1]" accessed July
31, 2019.
5. New York: Published by S. Converse. Printed by Hezekiah Howe, 1828
6. Noah had two brothers, Abraham (1751–1831)
7. Charles (b. 1762), and two sisters, Mercy (1749–1820) and Jerusha (1756–
1831).
8. Kendall, Joshua, The Forgotten Founding Father, p. 22.
9. Kendall, p. 22.
10. Richard Rollins, The Long Journey of Noah Webster (1980) p. 19.
11. Kendall, p. 54.
12. Rollins (1980) p. 24
13. Ellis 170

Internet resources
1. https://ischool.uw.edu/people/faculty/jwj
2. https://ischool.uw.edu/documents-that-changed-world
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noah_Webster
4. http://faculty.washington.edu/jwj/doc/webster.mp3
5. http://faculty.washington.edu/jwj/doc/ballot.mp3
6. https://ischool.uw.edu/
7. https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id549558135
8. https://ischool.uw.edu/documents-that-changed-world)