Des Lord Monboddo Werk von dem Ursprunge und Fortgange der Sprache.

Riga: Johann Friedrich Hartknoch,, 1784-85. First edition in German, all published, an abridgement of books I to III of Monboddo's Of the Origin and Progress of Language (1773-1776, with a further 3 volumes published in English 1787, 1789, and 1792). Translated by C. A. Schmid, with an introduction by Herder. Monboddo's work, published between 1773 and 1792, is one of the major 18th century English books on language. In it, he challenges many of the prevailing philosophical ideas and maintains "that the faculty of speech is not the gift of nature to man, but, like many others, is acquired by him; that not only there must have been society before language was invented, but that it must have subsisted a considerable time, and other arts have been invented, before this most difficult one was found out; which appears to me of so difficult invention, that it is not easy to account how it could at all have been invented." The work was much ridiculed in England; Johnson said that "Monboddo does not know that he is talking nonsense". Along with Harris's Hermes, it was one of the main targets for Tooke in The Diversions of Purley. But Monboddo was better appreciated in Germany, where Herder wrote a Preface for a translation based on the first three volumes only. In fact, all the philosophical material is contained in the first volume. The remaining volumes on Style and the Corruption of Language, are "grammatical and critical". 2 vols bound in one, octavo (202 x 114 mm). Contemporary half sheep and plain paper boards, spine ruled and decorated, morocco label, patterned paper pastedowns, red edges. gilt in compartments Spine chipped at foot, head of spine and corners worn. Ink shelf mark to front pastedown. Occasional light spotting; a very good copy. Jessop, p. 109.