A Dalmatian of Italian origin, Niccolò Tommaseo was born in 1802 in the Croatian town of Sebenico (now Split). He was educated at the University of Padua where he met social justice philosopher Antonio Rosmini (1797-1855) who encouraged his friend to pursue studies in literature rather than law. In 1824, Tommaseo moved to Milan where he found work with the publisher Stella. Although poorly paid and with no financial support from his family, Tommaseo found that the years spent in Milan were nevertheless profitable for him from a literary perspective. He began to frequent Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873), Italy’s premier writer of the time, who became Tommaseo’s mentor and friend. Later, encouraged by the promise of steady employment, Tommaseo departed for Florence in 1827 to work for…
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Citation: Urbancic, Anne. "Niccolò Tommaseo". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 June 2019 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=14437, accessed 19 April 2024.]
