A Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, William John Thoms (1803 85) pursued literary and bibliographical interests and conversed with the likes of Thomas Macaulay and Charles Dickens. Most notably, he coined the term 'folklore' in 1846 and founded the scholarly periodical Notes and Queries in 1849. This remarkable 1838 publication, dedicated to the soon-to-be-crowned Queen Victoria, is a review of British state ceremonial and court etiquette, giving details of the royal family from the queen herself downwards, with appropriate forms of address to each member, and describing the titles,...
A Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, William John Thoms (1803 85) pursued literary and bibliographical interests and conversed with the likes of Th...