Nicolò Tommaseo

Nicolò Tommaseo is best known for his monumental "Dizionario della lingua italiana," a comprehensive dictionary begun in the 1840s. The work was published across multiple volumes and remains a cornerstone of Italian lexicography. It is celebrated for its rigorous etymologies and extensive literary citations.

Tommaseo was born in 1802 in Šibenik, on the Dalmatian coast, which was then part of the Austrian Empire. This diverse cultural background exposed him to multiple Romance and Slavic languages from an early age. He later moved to Italy, where he became a central figure in the Italian literary and political scene.

Yes, Tommaseo was heavily involved in the Italian Risorgimento, actively supporting the movement for national unification. He participated in the brief Republic of San Marco in Venice in 1848 alongside Daniele Manin. His political activities led to periods of exile and imprisonment throughout his life.

Tommaseo's "Dizionario della lingua italiana" was a massive undertaking published across multiple thick volumes throughout the mid-19th century. The project was so extensive that it required collaboration with other scholars to complete its final entries after Tommaseo's initial drafting. The final dictionary set a new standard for historical lexicography in Italy.