William Young Sellar (1825-1890)

Scottish classical scholar, was born at Morvich, Sutherlandshire, on. the 22nd of February 1825. Educated at the Edinburgh Academy and afterwards at Glasgow University, he entered Balliol College, Oxford, as a scholar. Graduating with a first-class in classics, he was elected fellow of Oriel, and, after holdin.g assistant professorships at Durham, Glasgow and St Andrews, was appointed professor of Greek at St Andrews (1857). In. 1863 he was elected professor of humanity in Edinburgh University, and occupied that chair down to his death on the 12th of October 1890. Sellar was one of the most brilliant of modern classical scholars, and was remarkably successful in his endeavours to reproduce the spirit rather than the letter of Roman literature.

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