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William Caxton

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Publisher

The Resume

    (circa 1422-circa 1491)
    Born in the Weald of Kent, England, United Kingdom
    Introduced the printing press into England (1476)
    First English retailer of printed books
    Printed 87 different titles
    First printed title: ‘Dictes, or Sayings of the Philosophers’

Why he might be annoying:

    Little is known of his early life.
    Encyclopedia Britannica noted that he ‘showed no great typographical originality and produced no books of remarkable beauty.’
    Thanks in large part to a rushed printing schedule, his translations of foreign books into English contained numerous errors.
    He is believed to be responsible for inserting the silent ‘h’ into ‘ghost.’

Why he might not be annoying:

    He knew French, Dutch and Latin in addition to English.
    His printed works helped standardize the English language.
    He provided the first English translations of over 20 books, including Aesop’s Fables.
    A plaque honoring him was unveiled in Poet’s Corner of Westminster Abbey (1954).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 13 Votes: 76.92% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 7 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 4 Votes: 25.00% Annoying