Georges-Louis Leclerc de Buffon's Histoire naturelle in English, 1775–1815

Abstract

Published in French to considerable acclaim between 1749 and 1767, the 15-volume opening sub-series of Georges-Louis Leclerc de Buffon's Histoire naturelle was first translated into English in near entirety in 1775–1776. Over the next 40 years, two further comprehensive English-language translations were prepared and published in four editions each. This paper describes the three major English translations of Buffon's Histoire naturelle and compares their coverage, order, style, accuracy and footnotes. Supplemented with information from reviews, advertisements and partial translations and adaptations, the history of the large-scale English-language translations of Histoire naturelle provides clues about Buffon's reception in the Anglophone world.