Alexander Gill the Elder (7 February 1565 – 17 November 1635), also spelled Gil, was an English scholar, spelling reformer, and high-master of St Paul's School, where his pupils included John Milton. He was the author of an English grammar, written though in Latin.
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He was born in Lincolnshire 7 February 1565, was admitted scholar of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, in September 1583, and proceeded B.A. 1586 and M. A. 1589. Wood believed that he was a schoolmaster at Norwich, where he was living in 1597. On 10 March 1607-8 he was appointed high-master of St. Paul's School in succession to Richard Mulcaster. Milton was among his pupils from 1620 to 1625.[1]
When his son Alexander Gill the younger found himself in trouble in 1628, he intervened directly with William Laud. This effort managed a remission of the punishment inflicted by the Star-chamber. He died at his house in St. Paul's Churchyard 17 November 1635, and was buried 20 November in Mercers' Chapel.[1]
Logonomia Anglica, qua gentis sermo facilius addiscitur, London, by John Beale, 1619, 2nd edit. 1621, was his English grammar dedicated to James I. Gill's book, written in Latin, opens with suggestions for a phonetic system of English spelling (see below). In his section on grammatical and rhetorical figures Gill quotes freely from Edmund Spenser, George Wither, Samuel Daniel, and other English poets.[1] It was more comprehensive than earlier works, and devoted attention to syntax and prosody.[2] An edition was produced in 1903 by Otto Luitpold Jiriczek;[3] a facsimile of the 1619 edition was published in 1972.
Among the suggested changes to make English more phonetic were the following :
He also published two theological works