Jacob Grimm: A Life in Stories and Language
On a desk covered with handwritten notes and books, Jacob Grimm studied words and stories from the past. Some were familiar tales told by families. Others were old written works that held clues about how language had changed. Jacob spent much of his life bringing both kinds of material to readers.
Jacob was born in 1785 in Hanau, in what is now Germany. His brother Wilhelm was born the following year. The brothers grew up in a large family, and their lives became difficult when their father died in 1796. As young men, both studied law at the University of Marburg. There, they also developed an interest in older German literature and traditions.
Jacob and Wilhelm began collecting stories from people they knew and from written sources. Several storytellers were women from educated families, including members of the Wild and Hassenpflug families. Another important storyteller was Dorothea Viehmann, who shared many tales with the brothers. The stories came from different places and backgrounds; they were not all gathered from farmers or invented by the Grimms.
- literature:
- Written works, especially stories and other creative writing.
- traditions:
- Customs or beliefs passed from one generation to another.
- sources:
- Places, people, or materials from which information comes.
- editions:
- Published versions of a book.
- preserve:
- To keep something from being lost or forgotten.
- consonant:
- A speech sound made by partly or fully blocking airflow in the mouth.
- scholar:
- A person who studies a subject carefully and deeply.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 11. What two kinds of material did Jacob study, and what did he do with them?
- 22. How did studying at the University of Marburg connect to the brothers’ later work?
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About this biography passage for Upper Elementary
“Jacob Grimm: A Life in Stories and Language” is a biography reading passage about Literary History, written for Upper Elementary. It takes about 3 minutes to read (468 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.