Athenæ Oxonienses. The History of Oxford Writers. Vol. 2, p. 287

Stephen Skinner

Son of Joh. Skin. of London Gent. was born either in that City, or in the County of Middlesex, applied his studies to academical learning in the condition of a Communer, as it seems, in the royal foundation called Christ Church, an. 1638, aged 16 years or thereabouts: but before he could take one degree, the most unnatural Rebellion broke out to the great horror and reluctancy of all good men: so that travelling beyond the seas, he made progress in the studies of Arts and Philosophy in several Universities, with very great improvement. In 1646 or thereabouts, he returned to his native Count [•] y; and the Garrison of Oxford being that year reduced for the use of the Parliament, he returned to the then disconsolate Muses, and took both the degr. in Arts that year. Afterwards he finished his rambles in several Countries, as in France, Italy, Germany, the Spanish Netherlands, &c. visited the Courts of dive [•] s Princes, frequented several Universities, and obtained the company and friendship of the most learned men of them. At length upon the renovation of the University of Heidelberge by Charles Lewis Elector Palatine, he was adorned there with the degr. of Doctor of Physick, and held in admiration by all learned men at that place. Afterwards returning once more to his native Country, and to his Mother the Univ. of Oxon (then quite alter’d to what he had left it) was there incorporated in the same degr. an. 1654. About which time setling within the City of Lincoln, practised his faculty there and in the neighbourhood with good success, and therefore much reso [••] ed to by persons of all quality, and beloved of the Gent [•] y. He was a person well vers’d in most parts of learning, understood all books whether old or new, was most skilful in the oriental Tongues, an excellent Greecian, and in short a living library. He hath written,

Prolegomena Etymologica, with a large preface to it; and these things following.

Etymol [•] g [•] con linguae Anglican [•] e.

E [•] ym. Botanicum.

E [•] ymol [•] gica Exp [•] sitio vocum forensium.

Etymol. vocum omnium Anglicarum.

Etym. Onomasticon. &c.

He died of a malignant fever at Lincolne before mention’d on the fifth day of Septemb. in sixteen hundred sixty and seven,1667. and was buried in the Cath. Church there. After his death his before mention’d Works, which had been by him left imperfect, came into the hands of Thomas Henshaw of Kensington near London Esq. who correcting and digesting them, and adding many words to them of his own, were publ [••] hed [〈…〉] (with an Epistle before them to the Reader. of M [•] . H [••] sh [•] w’s writing) an. 1671. fol. with this [〈◊〉] E [•] y [••] l [•] gicon linguae Anglicanae, &c. In which book [〈◊〉] Wo [•] ds. and Additions, and Explanations, that have [〈…〉] H put to them, were done by the said Th. [〈◊〉] a noted Critick, sometimes a Communer of Univ. [〈◊〉] . and therefore hereafter to be numbred among the [〈◊〉] W [••] t [•] rs. See more of Dr. Skinner in Hist. & [〈◊〉] Univ. Ox [•] n. lib. 2. pag. [•] 80.