Archer Taylor (August 1, 1890 – September 30, 1973) was one of America's "foremost specialists in American and European folklore",[1] with a special interest in cultural history, literature, proverbs, riddles and bibliography.
He went on to Harvard University, receiving his Ph.D. degree in German in 1915[3] with a dissertation on the fairy tale motifs in the Wolfdietrich epics.
At Harvard, he studied under such famous scholars as Kuno Francke, George Lyman Kittredge, John Albrecht Walz, Hans Carl Gunther von Jagemann, William Henry Schofield, Charles Hall Grandgent, and F.N.
[4] In 1915 Taylor began teaching German at Washington University in St. Louis, eventually being promoted to professor.
In 1965, Archer worked with his Finnish friend Matti Kuusi to establish the journal Proverbium.
[7] His publications were numerous, included work in medieval literature, philology, folklore, bibliography, etc., eventually totalling over four hundred books, monographs, articles and notes in America and Europe.