Call Number:

Ms. Coll. 261

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Extent:

2 linear feet (9 boxes)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

Isaac Taylor papers, 1864-1896, Ms. Coll. 261, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania

Date:

1864-1896 (inclusive)

Creator:

Taylor, Isaac

Form:

Manuscripts (documents)

Abstract:

Isaac Taylor (1829–1901) was the canon of York as well as a philologist and toponymist. This collection contains manuscript copies of some of Taylor's best-known works, including Greeks and Goths (1879), The Alphabet (1883), and Origin of the Aryans (1890). Other titles included are Words and Places (1864), which first brought him to the attention of the public, and Names and Their Histories ([1898]).

Isaac Taylor (1829 May 2–1901 October 18) was the Anglican canon of York as well as a philologist and toponymist and is now chiefly remembered for his archaeological and philological studies, although he is also known for his inflammatory religious ideas and theological pamphlets.

This collection contains manuscript copies of some of Taylor's best-known works, including Greeks and Goths (1879), in which he posited that Gothic runes were derived from some version of the Hellenic alphabet used in Greek Black Sea colonies circa the sixth century BCE; The Alphabet (1883), a book on the origin and development of letters; and Origin of the Aryans (1890), an account of prehistoric European ethnology with a particular focus on whether the Aryans originally came from Asia or Europe. Other titles included are Words and Places (1864), a book on the relationship of etymology to history, ethnology, and geography, which first brought him to the attention of the public, and Names and Their Histories [1890s], a work about historical geography and topographical nomenclature.