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Michael Hancher

@michaelhancher.bsky.social

Sometime English professor, JHU and UMN; past president, Dictionary Society of North America. Victorian literature and art, book illustration, speech acts, interpretation, law. Macaulay and English in India (Routledge, 2026). https://z.umn.edu/M-H.

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Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · 2d ago

So Dr. Johnson: "we are well or ill at ease, as the main stream of life glides on smoothly, or is ruffled by small obstacles and frequent interruption." archive.org/details/bim_...

A journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. 1775

A journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. 1775..Digitized from IA40313511-86.Previous issue: bim_eighteenth-century_a-journey-to-the-western_johnson-samuel-lld_1775_2.Next issue: bim_eighteenth-ce...

archive.org

Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · 2d ago

Abbey copy of the book digitized: collections.britishart.yale.edu/print/alma:9...

Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · last wk.

What Google AI says right now about National Dictionary Day, including how it was established. share.google/aimode/cDvgE... @dictionarysoc.bsky.social

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Jim Wald@citizenwald.bsky.social · last wk.

It's Noah Webster's birthday (16 October 1758)--thus National #Dictionary Day thx 2 his role as the people's lexicographer. His Blue Back Speller languagemuseum.org/e.... & 1828 dictionary webstersdictionary18... were intended to create a distinctly American democratic English

Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · last mo.

Interesting to see recent news from China about machine translation vs. English-language instruction (www.nytimes.com/2026/09/16/w...). That same question concludes "Global English" (doi.org/10.4324/9781...), the last chapter in _Macaulay and English in India_ (Routledge, 2026).

In the Age of A.I., Some in China Wonder if Learning English Is Worth the Trouble

A math teacher’s viral post prompted a debate over the language, which some see as an optional skill — and a symbol of Western dominance.

nytimes.com

Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · last mo.

NB: "The Sherlock Holmes Collections at the University of Minnesota Library constitute the world’s largest gathering of material related to Sherlock Holmes and his creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle."

Midwest Victorian Studies Association@mvsa.bsky.social · last mo.

The CFP for the 2027 MVSA conference is live! The theme is “Detection: Exploring, Innovating, Locating, Uncovering." April 1-3, Minneapolis, MN. Apply by Dec. 7. midwestvictorian.org/conference/

British Library@britishlibrary.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Summer holiday, 1813 edition 🌊   That summer, artist William Daniell set off from Land’s End to travel the coast of Great Britain, sketching the landscapes along the way.   The result? Voyage Round Great Britain, an eight-volume record of 308 beautifully detailed acquatints of Britain’s coastline

An engraved drawing from inside a cave looking out to sea. The cave is full of cylindrical rock formations (that almost look like tree trunks or logs) and waves are crashing against them. In the background you can see ships out at sea in the distance, with birds flying in the sky.Engraving of a scenic view of a rugged coastline. Waves are crashing up against the side of the rocks and in the distance you can see land further out at sea. The coast is covered in puffins, both sat on the clifftops and flying.Engraving illustration of a ruined castle, all that remains is a turret, precariously positioned on the edge of a cliff. Surrounding it is lots of greenery, a beach and the sea. It looks like a lovely summer evening and there are people down at the beach and a couple sat by the ruins with their dog admiring the view.An engraving illustration of the a view out to the sea. In the foreground, you can see lots of greenery, grass where deer are grazing and large Monterey Cypress trees are growing leading down from the clifftop to the sea. In the background is the sea, you can see for miles and there are lots of little sailing boats in the water.
Michael Hancher@michaelhancher.bsky.social · 2mo ago

CFP: Dictionary Society of North America conference, University of California–Davis, June 23–26, 2027. dictionarysociety.com/dsna26-in-da... @dictionarysoc.bsky.social @lynneguist.bsky.social @euralex.bsky.social @lingsocam.bsky.social

DSNA26 in Davis, California | Dictionary Society of North America

DSNA26 in Davis, California June 23–26, 2027 Important Update: Revised Dates! The 26th Biennial Meeting of the Dictionary Society of North America at the Un ...

dictionarysociety.com