Author: Elphinston, James
Biography:
Elphinston, James (1721-1809: ODNB)
Teacher and advocate for spelling reform. He was born at Edinburgh to William and Rachel (Honeyman) Elphinston and studied at the High School and the University of Edinburgh. He left the University without taking a degree to tutor Lord Blantyre. He travelled to the Netherlands and France (where he learned to read and speak French); on his return to Edinburgh, he began editing an Edinburgh edition of Johnson’s Rambler for which Elphinston translated the Latin epigrams into English. In 1751 he married a Miss Gordon; two years later they moved to London to set up a school where the teaching of English was prioritized. Elphinston’s first published books were issued at this time and focused on the English language. After his wife’s death, Elphinston returned to Scotland in 1778; he subsequently alternated living in Edinburgh and in London, having gained a measure of financial independence through some bequests. He married Mary Clementina Charlotte Falconer in 1785. From 1786 Elphinston worked on devising a system for regularizing English spelling, believing that this would assist in developing correct pronunciation (that is, London pronunciation); his 1791 book of verse is part of this project. He was living at Hammersmith when he died following the amputation of an infected leg. (ODNB 19 June 2019) SR