Rafael Bluteau

author

Rafael Bluteau

1638–1734

Remembered as one of the great early lexicographers of Portuguese, this Theatine priest devoted years to compiling a vast dictionary that helped shape the study of the language. Born in London to French parents and active in Portugal, he left behind work that still matters to readers of linguistic history.

1 Audiobook

Instrvcçam sobre a cvltvra das amoreiras, & criaçaõ dos bichos da seda dirigida a conseruaçaõ, & augmento das manufacturas da seda, estabelecidas pelo... Principe Dom Pedro, Governador, e Regente dos Reinos de Portugal

Instrvcçam sobre a cvltvra das amoreiras, & criaçaõ dos bichos da seda dirigida a conseruaçaõ, & augmento das manufacturas da seda, estabelecidas pelo... Principe Dom Pedro, Governador, e Regente dos Reinos de Portugal

by Rafael Bluteau

About the author

Born in London on December 4, 1638, to French parents, Rafael Bluteau became a Theatine cleric and later made his life and career in Portugal. He died in Lisbon on February 14, 1734, after building a reputation as a learned religious writer and scholar.

He is best known for the monumental Vocabulário Português e Latino, published in multiple volumes in the early 18th century. The work is widely remembered as a landmark in Portuguese lexicography and as one of the earliest great dictionary projects for the language.

Alongside his dictionary work, Bluteau also wrote other prose works and took part in the intellectual life of his time. Today he is chiefly valued as a patient, ambitious compiler whose writing preserved words, meanings, and cultural knowledge for future generations.