Jacques Savary des Brûlons (1657–1716) was the French Inspector General of the Manufactures for the King at the Paris Customs in the 18th century, and a

lexicographer Lexicography is the study of lexicons and the art of compiling dictionaries. It is divided into two separate academic disciplines: * Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionary, dictionaries. * The ...

who wrote the ''Dictionnaire universel de commerce''. Jacques Savary des Brûlons was the son of the famous writer on economics Jacques Savary. For his personal use, Savary prepared an alphabetical list of all objects subject to duty, and then of all the words relating to commerce and industry. To this, he added information on the ordinances and rules regarding commerce in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and abroad. This work formed the basis for his ''Dictionnaire du Commerce'', prepared with his brother Louis-Philémon Savary, which was unfinished at the time of his death. Louis-Philémon finished the work and published it in 1723. Wyndham Beawes published ''The Merchant's Directory, Being a Compleat Guide to all Men in Business'' in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1751, a work that was largely a translation of the ''Dictionaire de commerce''. Carl Günther Ludovici of

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

made a German translation of the ''Dictionnaire du Commerce''. From this work grew a self-written ''Merchant Lexicon'', whose five volumes published by

Johann Heinrich Zedler Johann Heinrich Zedler (7 January 1706 in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) – 21 March 1751 in Leipzig) was a bookseller and publisher. His most important achievement was the creation of a German encyclopedia, the '' Grosses Universal-Lexicon (Gre ...

began to appear in 1752 and were completed in 1756. Savary's work was translated and adapted in English by

Malachy Postlethwayt Malachy Postlethwayt (5 May 1707–13 September 1767) was a British economist and lexicographer, famous for his publication of the commercial dictionary titled The Universal Dictionary of Trade and Commerce' in 1757. The dictionary was a tra ...

in his ''Universal Dictionary of Trade and Commerce'' in 1774.''Adam Smith Review'' Volume 4 by Vivienne Brown p.196
/ref>

Works

* ''Dictionnaire universel de commerce: d'histoire naturelle, & des arts & métiers'' 1723-1730 **

Notes

French lexicographers 1657 births 1716 deaths French male non-fiction writers {{France-linguist-stub