Edmund Evans Greaves Goodwin (24 August 1844 – 3 January 1925) was a

Manx language Manx ( or , pronounced or ), also known as Manx Gaelic, is a Gaelic language of the insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family. Manx is the historical language of the Manx peop ...

scholar, linguist, and teacher. He is best known for his work ''First Lessons in Manx'' that he wrote to accompany the classes he taught in Peel.

Early life

Goodwin was born on 24 August 1844 at Castle Street, Peel to Englishman George Goodwin and his Manx wife Alice Morrison. In his early childhood, Goodwin contracted an illness that left him unable to walk, and he was an invalid for the rest of his life. Despite his disability, he was devoted to music and helped to support himself by teaching singing and piano to the music students of Peel and the surrounding areas. One of his best known students was Sophie Morrison, the Manx cultural activist,

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

collector and author. Under Goodwin's tuition, she received honours from

Trinity College of Music Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a music and dance conservatoire based in London, England. It was formed in 2005 as a merger of two older institutions – Trinity College of Music and Laban Dance Centre. The conservatoire has ...

, Morrison was the first person on the island to pass a music college examination.Kenyon, J. Stowell; Maddrell,Breesha and Quilliam, Leslie (2006) 'Sophia Morrison' in Kelly, Dollin, ed. ''New Manx Worthies'', Douglas, Manx National Heritage. Even as a youth, Goodwin was noted for his aptitude for learning languages:

At the age of twelve I picked up my first knowledge of
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and
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
from old books which had belonged to my father. My first inducement to learn Latin and Italian was to be able to understand the words of Mozart’s Masses and Italian opera ''libretti''.

Throughout his life Goodwin would go on to have "good working knowledge" of sixteen languages and was able to read in several more.

Anglo-Manx dialect

Goodwin was interested in the dialect of English spoken on the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

, that was heavily influenced by the Manx language. He contributed to the writing of ''A Vocabulary of the Anglo-Manx Dialect'' by collaborating with A.W. Moore and Sophia Morrison. His contribution consisted primarily in relation to

phonology Phonology is the branch of linguistics that studies how languages or dialects systematically organize their sounds or, for sign languages, their constituent parts of signs. The term can also refer specifically to the sound or sign system of a ...

and the "putting the phonetic sounds to the words". He also listed the words alphabetically, added some of his own suggestions, and prepared the work for the press. The book was published in 1924 after Moore's death in 1909 and Morrison's in 1917.

Manx language

Following the decline of Manx as a community language on the Isle of Man during the 19th century, interest in the language was renewed, most notably among educated men in the town of Peel, where it was still common to hear Manx spoken by the

fishermen A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or recreat ...

. Goodwin began learning Manx in the autumn of 1893 and although his illness confined him to his bed for much of his life, he nevertheless studied Manx grammar and idiom in great detail with the help of "dictionary and Scriptures". Goodwin began teaching Manx in Peel, where the earliest iterations of ''First Lessons in Manx'' "for blackboard use" were written. Along with several other prominent members of the Manx language revival such as J. J. Kneen and Dr John Clague, Goodwin was a founding member of

Yn Çheshaght Ghailckagh , also known as the Manx Language Society and formerly known as Manx Gaelic Society, was founded in 1899 in the Isle of Man to promote the Manx language. The group's motto is (Without language, without country). History Following the decline ...

in 1899. A. W. Moore, the director of the

Manx Museum The Manx Museum (Thie Tashtee Vannin) in Douglas, Isle of Man is the national museum of the Isle of Man. It is run by Manx National Heritage. In general, the museum covers 10,000 years the history of the Isle of Man from the Stone Age to the modern ...

and the first president of

, was not concerned only with the preservation and promotion of the Manx language, but also with all things related to

Manx culture The culture of the Isle of Man is influenced by its Celtic and, to a lesser extent, its Norse origins, though its close proximity to the United Kingdom, popularity as a UK tourist destination, and recent mass immigration by British migrant worke ...

Though called the Manx Language Society, it should, I think, by no means confine its energies to the promotion of an interest in the language, but extend them to the study of
Manx history The Isle of Man had become separated from Great Britain and Ireland by 6500 BC. It appears that colonisation took place by sea sometime during the Mesolithic era (about 6500 BC).Richard Bradley ''The prehistory of Britain and Ireland,'' Cambridg ...
, the collection of
Manx music The music of the Isle of Man reflects Celtic, Norse and other influences, including those from its neighbours, Scotland, Ireland, England and Wales. The Isle of Man is a small island nation in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland ( ...
, ballads, carols,
folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...
, proverbs, place-names, including the old field names which are rapidly dying out in a word, to the preservation of everything that IS distinctively Manx, and, above all, to the cultivation of a national spirit.

In 1901 his ''First Lessons in Manx'' under the Manx name ''Lessoonyn ayns Çhengey ny Mayrey Ellan Vannin'' ("Lessons in the mother tongue of the Isle of Man") was published to help the small but growing community of learners of the Manx language. The book was serialised in Manx newspaper ''Mona's Herald'' and is still in use by Manx students on the Isle of Man today.

Published works

* 1901 - ''Lessoonyn ayns Çhengey ny Mayrey Ellan Vannin'' * 1924 - ''A Vocabulary of the Anglo-Manx Dialect'' (with Sophia Morrison and A.W. Moore)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodwin, Edmund Manx language activists Manx nationalists Manx writers Manx educators 1925 deaths 1844 births