Louis Braille
French organist and teacher (1809-1852), inventor of braille, a system for reading and writing text and music, used by people who are blind or visually impaired
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Louis Braille was a French organist and teacher who, in the 1800s, invented braille—a system that allows blind and visually impaired people to read and write text and music by touch. His invention remains essential today, giving millions of people who are blind or have low vision access to written information and literacy.
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Louis Braille (/breɪl/ brayl; French: [lwi bʁɑj]; 4 January 1809 – 6 January 1852) was a French educator and the inventor of a reading and writing system named after him, braille, intended for use by visually impaired people. His system is used worldwide and remains virtually unchanged to this day.
Braille was blinded in one eye at the age of three. This occurred as a result from an accident with a stitching awl in his father's harness-making shop. Consequently, an infection set in and spread to both eyes, resulting in total blindness. At that time, there were not many resources in place for the blind, but he nevertheless excelled in his education and received a scholarship to France's Royal Institute for Blind Youth. While still a student there, he began developing a system of tactile code that could allow blind people to read and write quickly and efficiently. Inspired by a system invented by Charles Barbier, Braille's new method was more compact and lent itself to a range of uses, including music. He presented his work to his peers for the first time in 1824, when he was fifteen years old.