author
José da Fonseca
1788–1866
A Portuguese teacher, lexicographer, and translator who spent much of his working life in Paris, he helped readers and students move between languages with practical dictionaries, grammars, and conversation guides. His books reflect a lifelong interest in language, learning, and clear expression.
1 Audiobook
English as she is spoke; or, a jest in sober earnest
by José da Fonseca, Pedro Carolino
About the author
Born in 1788, José da Fonseca became known for reference works and teaching materials in Portuguese and other languages. A biographical note reproduced by the Biblioteca Digital Ciarte says that he had studied drawing and painting in Portugal, then left for Paris in 1817, where he lived thereafter while working in education and producing elementary and philological works.
His name is especially linked with dictionaries, grammars, and manuals for learners. Library records and digital collections list works such as Portuguese-language dictionaries, bilingual dictionaries, and conversation guides, showing how strongly his career was tied to practical language study and translation.
Fonseca died in 1866. Though not widely remembered today outside specialist and library circles, his books give a vivid sense of the nineteenth-century world of self-education, language learning, and literary scholarship.