August Wilhelm Hupel

Who was August Wilhelm Hupel?

August Wilhelm Hupel was a Baltic German publicist, estophile and linguist. In 1766–1767, he translated for Lühhike öppetus, the first Estonian language periodical publication, edited by Peter Ernst Wilde. In 1771, he published a medical textbook, Arsti ramat nende juhhatamisseks kes tahtvad többed ärra-arvada ning parrandada.

In 1780, Hupel completed a treatise on Estonian grammar, Ehstnische Sprachlehre für beide Hauptdialekte, den revalschen und den dörptschen, nebst einem vollständigen Wörterbuch. First printing of the included dictionary contained around 17,000 words and description of their morphology. The second printing, printed in 1820, had grown to around 20,000 words.