Frederick Klaeber facts for kids

Frederick J. Klaeber (born Friedrich J. Klaeber) was a German expert in languages and old texts, known as a philologist. He was a professor at the University of Minnesota in the United States. He is famous for his important book about the old English poem Beowulf. His book, called Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg, has been printed since 1922 and is still used today. It is now in its fourth edition.

Biography

Grave of Klaeber in Bad Kösen, Germany

Frederick Klaeber was born in Beetzendorf, Kingdom of Prussia, on October 1, 1863. His parents were Hermann and Luise Klaeber.

He earned his highest degree, a doctorate, from the University of Berlin in 1892. Soon after, he was asked to teach English language studies at the University of Minnesota. He became a full professor there in 1898 and taught until 1931. In 1902, he married Charlotte Wahn.

After retiring in 1931, Klaeber moved back to Berlin. He continued to work on his famous Beowulf book. During World War II, his house in Berlin was destroyed. He lost many of his books, articles, and notes. He and his wife then moved to her house in Bad Kösen.

Even without his full library and with paper being hard to find, he kept working. He relied on help from friends and colleagues in the US. Toward the end of his life, Klaeber faced many challenges. He was sick, had little money, and was partly paralyzed. Despite this, he kept working on his studies until he died in 1954.

Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg

Frederick Klaeber was very good at many languages. He knew Greek, Latin, French, German, and different forms of English. Because of his skills, the University of Minnesota asked him to create an English version of Beowulf in 1893.

Klaeber spent 30 years on this big project. He finally published the first edition of Beowulf and the Fight at Finnsburg in 1922. He included a part called the Finnesburg Fragment. This is a small piece of another old poem that talks about an event mentioned in Beowulf.

He published a second edition in 1928 and a third in 1936. Later, he added updates to the third edition in 1941 and 1950. All of Klaeber's editions have a large introduction. This part discusses many topics about the poem. They also include a detailed commentary on specific parts of the text. Plus, there's a full glossary to explain difficult words.

For many years, Klaeber was seen as one of the top Beowulf experts. His major work became very important for students and scholars. Josephine Bloomfield, another scholar, said:

Among the editions of Beowulf, Frederick Klaeber's remains the most important. A monumental project begun in 1893, published in 1922, and revised and supplemented up to 1950, it continues to be the central source used by graduate students for the study of the poem and by scholars and teachers as the basis of their translations.

In 2008, a new version was published as the "fourth edition." This version was prepared by Robert Dennis Fulk, Robert E. Bjork, and John D. Niles. It keeps much of Klaeber's original design and text. However, it also includes new changes. These updates add new research about Beowulf that has come out since 1950.

Selected publications

Frederick Klaeber wrote many academic articles and books. Some of his notable works include:

• 1903: "Notes on Old English Prose Text", in: Modern Language Notes
• 1912: "Die christlichen Elemente im Beowulf" (The Christian Elements in Beowulf), in: Anglia (in German)
• 1929: Studies in English Philology: a miscellany in honor of Frederick Klaeber. This book was edited by Kemp Malone and Martin B. Ruud. It also includes a list of Klaeber's works by Stefán Einarsson.

See also

• Beowulf
• Grendel's mother