Is My The American Language a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first: Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1919 (full title 'The American Language: A Preliminary Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States'), limited to 1,500 numbered copies
• Each copy carries the limitation statement 'Of the first edition of this book fifteen hundred copies have been printed and the type distributed
• This is number ___,' which is the decisive first-printing point; copyright reads 'Copyright, 1919, by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.' Octavo, x, 374 pp, in publisher's blue cloth lettered on the spine with the top edge stained blue (a binding variant in black cloth with green spine lettering is also recorded)
• Corroborated by two independent dealer descriptions (The First Edition Rare Books
• Downtown Brown Books)

How Alfred A. Knopf marked a first edition

• 1915–c.1933 (no stated-edition era): first printings carry NO first-edition notation at all. Identify by EXCLUSION — a genuine first has none of the later-printing legends ('Second Printing,' 'Third Printing,' etc.) that…
• c.1933/1934 onward (stated 'First Edition' era — the core rule): Knopf began consistently printing 'FIRST EDITION' on the copyright page of first printings, or 'FIRST AMERICAN EDITION' when the book had already appeared…

Full Alfred A. Knopf first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

US first (Knopf, New York, 1919) is the true first; there is no UK or original-language precedence. 'First thus' trap: the work was substantially rewritten across the 2nd (1921), 3rd (1923), and completely reset and enlarged 4th edition (Knopf, 1936), plus its two Supplements (1945, 1948) — those are the standard reading texts and are frequently mislabeled 'first edition.' Only the 1919 numbered limited issue is the true first.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No first-year book-club issue; later trade editions are common and are not the 1919 limited printing. Absence of the numbered limitation leaf rules out the true first.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The American Language a first edition?

A first edition of The American Language by H. L. Mencken (Alfred A. Knopf) is identified by: Knopf, New York, 1919 (full title 'The American Language: A Preliminary Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States'), limited to 1,500 numbered copies.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. US first (Knopf, New York, 1919) is the true first; there is no UK or original-language precedence.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No first-year book-club issue; later trade editions are common and are not the 1919 limited printing. Absence of the numbered limitation leaf rules out the true first.

I have a first edition of The American Language — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.