Anu Garg
Encyclopedia
Anu Garg an Indian-American author and speaker, is best known as the founder of Wordsmith.org, an online community comprising word lovers from an estimated 200 countries. His books explore the joy of words. He has authored A Word A Day: A Romp Through Some of the Most Unusual and Intriguing Words, Another Word a Day and The Dord, the Diglot, and an Avocado or Two: The Hidden Lives and Strange Origins of Common and Not-So-Common Words. He writes about language-related issues for magazines and newspapers and speaks internationally. He is a columnist for MSN Encarta and Kahani magazine.
He has been profiled in The New York Times
, USA Today
, Reader's Digest
, The Wall Street Journal
, Smithsonian
, National Public Radio, and BBC
, among others.
. His schooling took place under a mango tree, his classroom consisting of a few broken sticks of chalk and a blackboard made by painting a flat piece of wood with soot. The only language he knew was Hindi
, and did not see a library until college. Anu Garg graduated from Harcourt Butler Technological Institute
in Computer Science in 1988.
He moved to the United States
to do graduate studies in Computer Science
at Case Western Reserve University
, and then worked as a Computer Scientist
at AT&T
and other corporations. He founded Wordsmith.org in 1994, during his graduate work. In 2010, the number of subscribers to Wordsmith.org's "A Word A Day" email list reached one million.
He lives in the Seattle
area with his wife and daughter. He is a vegan.
He has been profiled in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, Smithsonian
Smithsonian (magazine)
Smithsonian is the official journal published by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. The first issue was published in 1970.-History:...
, National Public Radio, and BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, among others.
Biography
Garg was born in rural IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. His schooling took place under a mango tree, his classroom consisting of a few broken sticks of chalk and a blackboard made by painting a flat piece of wood with soot. The only language he knew was Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
, and did not see a library until college. Anu Garg graduated from Harcourt Butler Technological Institute
Harcourt Butler Technological Institute
Harcourt Butler Technological Institute, Kanpur is an academic autonomous engineering college under the Uttar Pradesh Technical University. Its programs have been conferred autonomous status under the university. It is the second engineering institute in Uttar Pradesh after the former University of...
in Computer Science in 1988.
He moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to do graduate studies in Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a private research university located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA...
, and then worked as a Computer Scientist
Computer scientist
A computer scientist is a scientist who has acquired knowledge of computer science, the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and their application in computer systems....
at AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
and other corporations. He founded Wordsmith.org in 1994, during his graduate work. In 2010, the number of subscribers to Wordsmith.org's "A Word A Day" email list reached one million.
He lives in the Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
area with his wife and daughter. He is a vegan.