- Listenly
- Public Library
- All Authors
- Addison Van Name
author
Addison Van Name
A gifted Yale scholar and librarian, he spent decades building one of the country’s great university libraries while pursuing a deep interest in languages and Eastern studies. His career joined quiet scholarship with the practical work of preserving and expanding knowledge.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Born in 1835, Addison Van Name was an American philologist and librarian whose career was closely tied to Yale University. He graduated from Yale as valedictorian in 1858, later taught there, and became University Librarian in 1865.
He remained in that role until 1904, helping guide Yale’s library through a long period of growth and change. He was also active in learned societies, including the American Oriental Society, and was known for his serious interest in languages and Oriental studies.
Van Name died in 1922, but he is still remembered as both a scholar and a builder of collections. His life reflects a time when librarianship was not only about managing books, but also about shaping the intellectual resources of a university for generations to come.