Darmesteter, Arsène

Arsène Darmesteter, (born Jan. 5, 1846, Château-Salins, Fr.—died Nov. 16, 1888, Paris), language scholar who advanced knowledge of the history of French, particularly through his elucidation of Old French.

Prior to becoming professor of Old French language and literature at the Sorbonne (1881), he published Traité de la formation des mots . . . (1873; “Treatise on the Formation of Words . . .”) and La Vie des mots . . . (1887; The Life of Words . . .). He collaborated with the French linguists Adolphe Hatzfeld and Antoine Thomas on the preparation of Dictionnaire général de la langue française . . . 2 vol. (1890–1900; “General Dictionary of the French Language . . .”). Arsène Darmesteter was the brother of the Orientalist James Darmesteter.