Russia

by William Richard Morfill

William Richard Morfill (1834-1909) was a University of Oxford professor, specializing in Russian and Slavonic languages. He was born in England, and even as a small child was interested in foreign languages. While at Tonbridge School, a teacher introduced him to the Russian language, and it remained a lifelong passion.

Morfill graduated from Oxford with an MA in 1860, and he began publishing his work in Russian, focusing on translation. In addition to his schooling, he learned languages through travel. He started his major travels in 1870, going to Russia, Prague, and later Georgia. He wrote numerous publications, including A Simplified Grammar of the Polish Language (1884), A Grammar of the Russian Language (1889), Slavonic Religion (1904).