Who published the first comprehensive American English dictionary in 1828?

Noah Webster published the first comprehensive American English dictionary in 1828.

Its title was An American Dictionary of the English Language. Webster intended the work to help standardize vocabulary and spelling in the newly independent United States, where regional usage varied and British dictionaries remained influential. The dictionary represented language as part of American cultural and national identity.

Webster began the project after publishing A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language in 1806. He worked on the larger dictionary for about 26 years, studying numerous languages and collecting words, definitions and literary examples. The 1828 edition contained about 70,000 entries, including many terms associated with American life.

Webster also helped popularize spellings such as “color,” “center” and “defense,” although he did not invent every spelling now regarded as distinctively American. The original dictionary was published in two quarto volumes and initially sold only about 2,500 copies. After Webster’s death in 1843, George and Charles Merriam acquired the dictionary rights, leading to the Merriam-Webster name.