Adam Littleton 1627-1694

Adam LITTLETON 1627-1694

Biographical Note

Born at Halesowen, Shropshire, son of Thomas Littleton, Vicar there. Admitted at Christ Church, Oxford, 1644, ejected 1648. Created D.D. 1670. Became Usher at Westminster School, Second Master there 1658. Chaplain in Ordinary to Charles II 1660. Rector of St Luke’s, Chelsea 1667; prebendary of Westminster 1669; possibly Rector of Overton, Hampshire, from 1683; minister of St Botolph, Aldersgate 1685-91.

Littleton was celebrated not only as a preacher but also as a linguist and grammarian; his Linguae Latinae liber dictionaries (1678) was the best known of his numerous publications, a major Latin dictionary which was reprinted several times. He also published Greek and Hebrew grammars, and failed to complete a Greek lexicon on which he worked towards the end of his life.

Books

Littleton’s library was auctioned in London by John Bullord, 15 April 1695. The catalogue, which noted the extensive holdings of books in oriental and other languages, lists 1186 lots, divided into Latin theology (193), Latin miscellaneous (430), oriental languages (129), European languages (including Irish, Polish and Portuguese as well as French, Italian and Spanish) (154), English divinity and miscellaneous (280). The catalogue titlepage also refers to a manuscript Koran, and other manuscripts, not apparently listed in the text.

Characteristic Markings

None of Littleton’s books have been identified.

Sources

• Alston, R. C., Inventory of sale catalogues ... 1695-1800, St Philip, 2010.
• Bibliotheca Littletoniana, 1695 (ESTC R213701).
• Key, Newton E. "Littleton, Adam (1627–1694), Church of England clergyman and philologist." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.