braille

Where does the word "braille" come from? It comes from French Braille, and was adopted directly into English (1850s).

Braille’s story begins in French: Braille meant “a family name.” Louis Braille, blinded at three in his father's harness workshop at Coupvray, devised his six-dot code at 15 in 1824, adapting Charles Barbier's army 'night writing'. It reached English by 1850s as braille. Britain's British and Foreign Blind Association, founded by Thomas Rhodes Armitage in 1868, campaigned for braille over rival raised-letter systems. Today, braille means a writing system of raised dots read by touch.

1. Stage 1 · French · 1824 Braille "a family name", Louis Braille, blinded at three in his father's harness workshop at Coupvray, devised his six-dot code at 15 in 1824, adapting Charles Barbier's army 'night writing'.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1850s braille "raised-dot writing for the blind", Britain's British and Foreign Blind Association, founded by Thomas Rhodes Armitage in 1868, campaigned for braille over rival raised-letter systems.