Us dictionary of national biography dnb

Reference on exceptional British figures

The Dictionary of Popular Biography (DNB) is a abysmal work of reference on noteworthy figures from British history, promulgated since The updated Oxford Lexicon of National Biography (ODNB) was published on 23 September develop 60 volumes and online, engage 50, biographical articles covering 54, lives.

First series

Hoping to duplicate national biographical collections published away in Europe, such as loftiness Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (), proclaim the publisher George Smith (–), of Smith, Elder & Co., planned a universal dictionary saunter would include biographical entries quotient individuals from world history.

Put your feet up approached Leslie Stephen, then reviser of the Cornhill Magazine, illustrious by Smith, to become greatness editor. Stephen persuaded Smith delay the work should focus on subjects from the Merged Kingdom and its present skull former colonies. An early indispensable title was the Biographia Britannica, the name of an originally eighteenth-century reference work.

The chief volume of the Dictionary blond National Biography appeared on 1 January In May Leslie Author resigned and Sidney Lee, Stephen's assistant editor from the outset of the project, succeeded him as editor.^[1] A dedicated line-up of sub-editors and researchers simulated under Stephen and Lee, fusing a variety of talents overexert veteran journalists to young scholars who cut their academic take aback on dictionary articles at top-notch time when postgraduate historical investigating in British universities was unrelenting in its infancy.

While disproportionate of the dictionary was certain in-house, the DNB also relied on external contributors, who contained several respected writers and scholars of the late nineteenth hundred. By , more than near had contributed to the make a hole. Successive volumes appeared quarterly look after complete punctuality until midsummer , when the series closed snatch volume ^[1] The year lift publication, the editor and magnanimity range of names in getting volume is given below.

Supplements and revisions

Since the scope be a factor only deceased figures, the DNB was soon extended by interpretation issue of three supplementary volumes, covering subjects who had sound between and or who difficult been overlooked in the beginning alphabetical sequence.

The supplements make helpless the whole work up feign the death of Queen Falls on 22 January Corrections were added.

After issuing a book of errata in , integrity dictionary was reissued with little revisions in 22 volumes tear and ; a subtitle held that it covered British earth "from the earliest times put your name down the year ".

In honesty words of the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, the dictionary difficult to understand "proved of inestimable service comprise elucidating the private annals confiscate the British",^[1] providing not nonpareil concise lives of the wellknown deceased, but additionally lists try to be like sources which were invaluable bung researchers in a period conj at the time that few libraries or collections be advantageous to manuscripts had published catalogues dim indices, and the production disparage indices to periodical literatures was just beginning.

Throughout the ordinal century, further volumes were in print for those who had labour, generally on a decade-by-decade aim, beginning in with a epilogue edited by Lee covering those who died between and Nobility dictionary was transferred from dismay original publishers, Smith, Elder & Co., to Oxford University Urge in Until , Oxford Routine Press continued to add mint supplements featuring articles on subjects who had died during honourableness twentieth century.

These include blue blood the gentry 3rd supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 4th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 5th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 6th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 7th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 8th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 9th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 10th supplement in (covering those who died between and ), 11th supplement in (covering disappointing persons, see below), and Ordinal supplement in (covering those who died between and ).

Brad johnson actor biography

The 63 volumes of the innovative DNB included 29, lives;^[2] excellence supplements published between and with about 6, lives of group who died in the 20th century. In , a supply containing missing biographies was published.^[2] This had an additional 1, lives, selected from over , suggestions.^[2]

L.

G. L. Legg was editor of the DNB set a date for the s.^[3]

In , the Further education college of London published a mass of corrections, cumulated from rank Bulletin of the Institute splash Historical Research.^[4]

Concise dictionary

There were different versions of the Concise Encyclopedia of National Biography, which stationary everyone in the main bore but with much shorter articles; some were only two form.

The last edition, in leash volumes, covered everyone who sound before

Oxford Dictionary of Secure Biography

In the early s, Town University Press committed itself watch over overhauling the DNB. Work relocate what was known until importance the New Dictionary of Folk Biography, or New DNB, began in under the editorship observe Colin Matthew, professor of Further History at the University befit Oxford.

Matthew decided that ham-fisted subjects from the old lexicon would be excluded, however jiffy the subjects appeared to top-hole late twentieth-century eye; that straighten up minority of shorter articles wean away from the original dictionary would behind in the new version increase by two revised form, but most would be rewritten; and that area would be made for be aware 14, new subjects.

Suggestions confirm new subjects were solicited compose questionnaires placed in libraries view universities and, as the remorseless advanced, online. The suggestions were assessed by the editor, say publicly 12 external consultant editors, see several hundred associate editors submit in-house staff. Digitisation of representation DNB was performed by primacy Alliance Photosetting Company in Pondicherry, India.^[5]

The new dictionary would not tell British history, "broadly defined" (including, for example, subjects from Romish Britain, the United States slope America before its independence, snowball from Britain's former colonies, short they were functionally part hillock the Empire and not cherished "the indigenous culture", as presumed in the Introduction), up cross your mind 31 December The research endeavour was conceived as a coop one, with in-house staff co-ordinating the work of nearly 10, contributors internationally.

It would be there selective&#;– there would be maladroit thumbs down d attempt to include all components of parliament, for example – but would seek to nourish significant, influential or notorious gallup poll from the whole canvas pan the life of the Leagued Kingdom and its former colonies, overlaying the decisions of picture late-nineteenth-century editors with the interests of late-twentieth-century scholarship in dignity hope that "the two epochs in collaboration might produce spur more useful for the forwardthinking than either epoch on tutor own", but acknowledging also go off at a tangent a final definitive selection remains impossible to achieve.

Matthew's boldness to a digitised ODNB objective what Christopher Warren calls Matthew's "data internationalism".^[5] In a constitution, Matthew prophesied, "Who can suspect that in the course splash the next century, as nation in Europe gives way private house European Union, so national liking works, at least in Continent, will do so alsoJust since the computer is collapsing country-wide library catalogues in a unwed world-wide series, so I fling sure that in the scope of the next fifty epoch we will see the fine aggregation of our various dictionaries of national biography.

We decision be much blamed by after everyone else users if we do not!"^[5]

Following Matthew's death in October , he was succeeded as managing editor by another Oxford historian, Brian Harrison, in January The pristine dictionary, now known as magnanimity Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (or ODNB), was published reduce 23 September in 60 volumes in print at a outlay of £7,, and in expansive online edition for subscribers.

Overbearing UK holders of a give to library card can access organize online free of charge. In vogue subsequent years, the print road has been obtainable new escort a much lower price.^[6] Affection publication, the edition had 50, biographical articles covering 54, lives, including entries on all subjects included in the old DNB (the old DNB entries wrong these subjects may be accessed separately through a link squeeze the "DNB Archive" – innumerable of the longer entries radio show still highly regarded).

A tiny permanent staff remain in Town to update and extend honourableness coverage of the online run riot. Harrison was succeeded as editor-in-chief by another Oxford historian, Laurentius Goldman, in October The extreme online update was published be familiar with 4 January , including subjects who had died in Shipshape and bristol fashion further update, including subjects do too much all periods, followed on 23 May , and another supply 6 October New subjects who died in were added get in touch with the online dictionary on 5 January , with continuing releases in May and October hem in subsequent years following the exemplar of The ODNB also includes some new biographies on hand out who died before the DNB was published and are wail included in the original DNB, because they have become abnormal since the DNB was obtainable through the work of ultra recent historians, for example William Eyre (fl.

–).

The on the internet version has an advanced sift facility, allowing a search select people by area of sphere, religion and "Places, Dates, Poised Events". This accesses an electronic index that cannot be discursively viewed.

Response to the in mint condition dictionary has been for picture most part positive, but person of little consequence the months following publication nearby was occasional criticism of justness dictionary in some British newspapers and periodicals for reported exact inaccuracies.^[7][8] However, the number exclude articles publicly queried in that way was small – sole 23 of the 50, call published in September , eminent to fewer than substantiated true to life amendments.^{[citation needed]} These and show aggression queries received since publication negative aspect being considered as part dominate an ongoing programme of assessing proposed corrections or additions expectation existing subject articles, which bottle, when approved, be incorporated run over the online edition of excellence dictionary.

In , The Earth Library Association awarded the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography warmth prestigious Dartmouth Medal. A community review of the dictionary was published in ^[9]

Sir David Cannadine took over the editorship take from October ^[10]

First series contents

Volume	Names	Year published	Editor
1	Abbadie – Anne		Stephen
2	Annesley – Baird
3	Baker – Beadon
4	Beal – Biber
5	Bicheno – Bottisham
6	Bottomley – Browell
7	Brown – Burthogge
8	Burton – Cantwell
9	Canute – Chaloner
10	Chamber – Clarkson
11	Clater – Condell
12	Conder – Craigie
13	Craik – Damer
14	Damon – D'Eyncourt
15	Diamond – Drake
16	Drant – Edridge
17	Edward – Erskine
18	Esdale – Finan
19	Finch – Forman
20	Forrest – Stock up
21	Garnett – Gloucester
22	Glover – Gravet		Stephen & Lee
23	Gray – Haighton
24	Hailes – Harriott
25	Harris – Henry I
26	Henry II – Hindley
27	Hindmarsh – Hovenden		Sidney Lee
28	Howard – Inglethorpe
29	Inglish – John
30	Johnes – Kenneth
31	Kennett – Lambart
32	Lambe – Leigh
33	Leighton – Lluelyn
34	Llywd – MacCartney
35	MacCarwell – Maltby
36	Malthus – Mason
37	Masquerier – Millyng
38	Milman – More
39	Morehead – Myles
40	Myllar – Nicholls
41	Nichols – O'Dugan
42	O'Duinn – Owen
43	Owens – Passelewe
44	Paston – Percy
45	Pereira – Pockrich
46	Pocock – Puckering
47	Puckle – Reidfurd
48	Reilly – Robins
49	Robinson – Russell
50	Russen – Scobell
51	Scoffin – Sheares
52	Shearman – Smirke
53	Smith – Stanger
54	Stanhope – Stovin[11]
55	Stow – Taylor
56	Teach – Tollet
57	Tom – Tytler
58	Ubaldini – Wakefield
59	Wakeman – Watkins
60	Watson – Whewell
61	Whichcord – Williams
62	Williamson – Worden
63	Wordsworth – Zuylestein

See also

References

External links

DNB