Jacob Rodrigue Péreire (April 11th 1715 - September 15th 1780) is in France one of the precursors of the education of the deaf persons and the Orthophonie. Recognized and polyglot scientist, it carried out also a political action to defend the rights of the community of the Jews " portugais".

Biographical elements

Born in Spain, with Berlanga, in 1715, of a family Marrane, baptized under the name of Francisco-Antonio Rodriguez, he is the son of Abigaïl Rivka Rodriguès and Abraham Rodriguès Péreyra, trading, born with Chacim, the Portugal, a locality close to Bragance, one of the great centers of the Crypto-Judaism. In 1698, Abraham settles in Spain. His/her daughters (at least two) like two wire: Jacob and his younger brother David, come to fix themselves in France with their mother. The Jewish community of Bordeaux at the time is already sufficiently structured to attract Marranes which wants to flee Portugal and to make a return to the Judaïsme. Jacob Rodrigue Péreire is circoncis at the age of twenty-six years on November 8th 1741. As of 1734, Péreire is documented on the methods of education of the deaf-mute ones. It is undoubtedly for its period of Bordeaux (of 1741 to 1746) that Péreire learns the Hebrew . It leaves Bordeaux in 1746 to follow to the College of Beaumont out of Trough, close to Caen, the second deaf-mute pupil which one entrusts rehabilitation to him, the young person of Etavigny. There settle in July 1746 there, and will remain there three years, cut by several stays with Paris. It is in April 1749 which it definitively sets at Paris with its pupil. Its residence is used as pension for the young person of Étavigny and the other deaf-mute pupils who will be entrusted to him in the following years. Péreire lives then the capital in an uninterrupted way. November 5th 1766, it marries in Bordeaux a Portuguese young girl thirty years younger than him. They had six children of which four died in low age. He dies on September 15th, 1780.

The work of Péreire

Péreire privileges the demutisation, speech reading, the early training of the reading and uses a Dactylologie adapted to the French language, inspired of the manual alphabet of Juan de Pablo Bonet. It is the subject of anonymous attacks of the abbot Charles-Michel of the Sword, which seeks to him also an institutional recognition in the field of the education of the deaf persons. The work of Péreire is not limited to this only field. Its knowledge in physics and mathematics is worth to him honors and the friendship of the largest scientists of its time: Buffon which quotes it in its Natural history, Réaumur and Condamine. Its knowledge of languages is worth to him the regard of Bougainville which will entrust to him the observation and the description of the language of Tahitien Aotourou. It handles perfectly Portuguese, French, Italian and Hebrew. It translates into French several prayers composed by the rabbi of Bordeaux for circumstances concerning the royal family: disease of the king, the queen or the dolphin. Qualities of Péreire as translator are noticed, and in 1765, it receives officially Louis XV the title of: “Interpreter of his majesty for the languages Spanish and Portuguese”. One owes him the edition, in 1765 and 1776, of all the letters patent which, since Henri It until Louis XVI, concerned and protected the Portuguese Jews.

The first two deaf persons educated by Péreire: Aaron Beaumarin and Mr. d' Azy d' Etavigny

Aaron Beaumarin, deaf-mute of birth, born about 1732, was presented to the Academy of La Rochelle, at the beginning of 1745. In order to make note the effectiveness of its method, it made draw up in front of notaries rochelais an act noting the infirmity of birth of its pupil. The second was the subject of a Report presented to Paris, with the Academy of Science to the meeting on June 11th, 1749.