George Philip Krapp (1872–1934) was a scholar of the English language who was born in Cincinnati. He graduated from

Wittenberg College Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. ...

in 1894 and received a PhD from

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consiste ...

in 1899. His doctoral thesis was on the Legend of the Purgatory of St. Patrick. In 1897 Krapp joined the faculty of Columbia University, becoming professor of English at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44, ...

(1908–1910) before gaining the same title at Columbia (1910–1934). His best known achievement is conceiving and in large part undertaking the six volume

Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records The Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records (ASPR) is a six-volume edition intended at the time of its publication to encompass all known Old English poetry. Despite many subsequent editions of individual poems or collections, it has remained the standard refer ...

edition (begun in 1931, and concluded by Krapp's collaborator

Elliott Van Kirk Dobbie Elliott Van Kirk Dobbie (May 9, 1907 – March 23, 1970) was an American scholar of Anglo-Saxon literature who taught English at Columbia University. Early life Dobbie was born in Brooklyn, New York City, in 1907. Education and academic care ...

in 1953). Krapp is also noted for his books ''Modern English: Its Growth and Present Use'' (1909) in which he argued "that 'good English' was not determined by the conformity to grammatical laws, but by the common use of language", and ''The English Language in America'' (1925) described by

Henry Blake Fuller Henry Blake Fuller (January 9, 1857 – July 28, 1929) was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born and worked in Chicago, Illinois. He is perhaps the earliest novelist from Chicago to gain a national reputation. His exploratio ...

as "detailing the adventures of an old language in a new country" and a book that "contravenes many of our favorite notions about ourselves and our speech". He wrote six children's books about subjects such as "the Civil War, the Great Lakes, the frontier, and country life". In June 1924, Krapp wrote in ''The American Mercury'' several words in African American dialect were from common English usage that lingered in "Negro speech" while becoming archaic elsewhere. The article was noted in

Monroe Work Monroe Nathan Work (August 15, 1866 – May 2, 1945) was an African-American sociologist who founded the Department of Records and Research at the Tuskegee Institute in 1908. His published works include the ''Negro Year Book'' and '' A Bibliograph ...

's ''Negro Yearbook 1925-1926'' (page 45) and elsewhere.

Legacy

Following his death, his widow donated 500 of his books to Columbia University. His wife, Elisabeth Christina von Saltza, was the daughter of Swedish painter Carl Frederick von Saltza, and his brother-in-law was painter Philip von Saltza. His son was literary scholar Robert M. Adams.

Legacy

References

Further reading