bibliographer

American  

[bib-lee-og-ruh-fer] / ˌbɪb liˈɒg rə fər /

noun

1. an expert in bibliography.

2. a person who compiles bibliographies.

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Etymology

Origin of bibliographer

1650–60; < Greek bibliográph ( os ) book-writer ( see biblio-, -graph) + -er ¹

Explanation

If you’ve decided to read everything Shakespeare ever wrote, or are looking for the best books on American basketball for a research paper, you’ll appreciate that some bibliographer somewhere has probably made a list suitable for each of those two projects. A professional bibliographer makes lists of published writings, including when and where they were published and sometimes giving notes on each one. The list, called a bibliography, might be all of a certain author's works, or all the most important works on a certain topic. The Greek roots of both words are biblion, "book," and graphos, "something drawn or written." Whenever you make a list of all the resources you consulted for an essay, you’re making a bibliography and acting as an amateur bibliographer yourself.

Example Sentences

By 1968, 20 US universities were receiving materials from the growing collection, as noted by Maureen LP Patterson, a leading bibliographer of South Asian studies.

From BBC • Dec. 29, 2024

The heir contacted Lucio Aquilanti, a Buenos Aires antiquarian bookseller, and a prominent Cortázar bibliographer, who confirmed the piece’s authenticity.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 12, 2023

Two of this volume’s other essays closely consider the value of association copies — that is, copies with a noteworthy provenance — and the principles that guide a bibliographer.

From Washington Post • Nov. 10, 2022

And then the relationship between Edgar Allan Poe and Griswold, who became his bibliographer after he died, and kept Poe a minor figure in literature for over a hundred years.

From The Guardian • Jun. 14, 2013

Their value as literature, however, does not come within the province of the bibliographer.

From The Bibliography of Walt Whitman by Shay, Frank