The Grimm brothers are heralded as the founding fathers of the German language in addition to being the collectors of historical German folklore. What many people may not know about the Grimm brothers is that they published more than just fairy-tales.
They also published works such as The German Dictionary and German Grammar. As German language enthusiasts, the brothers wanted to document as much of the German language as possible because of the political strife that threatened to divide the country and endanger the language during their lives.
Grimm Brothers Unrecognized During Their Lifetimes
The Grimm brothers published many works during their lifetimes, but they remained largely unrecognized and unknown. Their linguistic works were eventually used by German linguists for German translation for a hundred years after their death, and of course, their fairy-tales remain popular to this day.
However, during their lives, the brothers were considered to be rude, obstinate, and purposefully antagonistic towards their peers and other scholars. They seemed only to get along with each other, and they also loved their studies. They worked as librarians, journalists, and eventually as professors.
The brothers were also professional translators for the German language, but they put all their talent into documenting the language instead of making a profit from translation work.