Dr. Richard Francis Weymouth (M.A., D.Litt.) (1822–1902) was an English schoolmaster,

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

layman and Bible student known particularly for producing one of the earliest modern language translations of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

Life

Born near

Devonport, Devon Devonport ( ), formerly named Plymouth Dock or just Dock, is a district of Plymouth in the English county of Devon, although it was, at one time, the more important settlement. It became a county borough in 1889. Devonport was originally one o ...

, he was the son of Richard Weymouth and his wife Ann Sprague. He was educated at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

. He taught at a

private school Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

before being appointed headmaster of

Mill Hill School Mill Hill School is a 13–18 mixed independent, day and boarding school in Mill Hill, London, England that was established in 1807. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. History A committee of Nonconformist me ...

in 1869, when Thomas Scrutton and his supporters formed a new trust to reopen and revive the school, which had closed the previous year. Weymouth was also a fellow of

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

from 1869, and taught there until 1886, before retiring in 1891 to devote himself to

textual criticism Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts or of printed books. Such texts may range in ...

and Bible study. He died in 1902.

Works

Weymouth's first important work was ''The Resultant Greek Testament'', an eclectic text based on the work of the most prominent textual critics of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. His major publication was ''The Modern Speech New Testament'', known as the

Weymouth New Testament The Weymouth New Testament ("WNT"), otherwise known as ''The New Testament in Modern Speech'' or ''The Modern Speech New Testament'', is a translation of the New Testament into nineteenth-century English by Richard Francis Weymouth. It was based ...

, edited by his secretary, Ernest Hampden-Cook, and published in 1903 in New York and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England. Weymouth wanted to produce a version that ordinary people could read. It renders Greek idioms into modern English. He also published ''A literal translation of Cynewulf's Elene from Zupitza's text'' (1888),Cynewulf., Weymouth, R. Francis., Zupitza, J. (1888)
A literal translation of Cynewulf's Elene from Zupitza's text
ondon. based on ''Cynewulfs Elene mit einem Glossar'' by German philologist Julius Zupitza.

References

External links

* * *
English early 20th century versions of the Bible
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weymouth, Richard 1822 births 1902 deaths People from Devonport, Plymouth Alumni of University College London English Baptists Translators of the Bible into English British biblical scholars 19th-century Baptists 19th-century English people 19th-century translators