John Charles Traupman (January 2, 1923 – February 18, 2019) was a prolific American author of Latin and German language books and a long-serving professor of Classics at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, PA.
Early life and education Traupman was born in Nazareth, PA. He attended Geneva Seminary in Ohio, but later enlisted in the US Army. Traupman was already fluent in German, but he was sent to Japan where he also became fluent in Japanese. He eventually achieved the rank of Sgt. Major.
After the war he earned a degree in Latin and the Classics from Moravian College. Traupman received his PhD from Princeton University in 1964.
Career He joined faculty of St. Joseph's College (now University), and worked 38 years there as a professor of Latin. For the last 30 years of his career he also served as chair of the Classics Department. Traupman served as president of the Philadelphia Classical Society for 8 years and was instrumental in its growth.
Legacy "John [Traupman] received numerous awards and was known world wide for his publications that are still being used in universities to this day."
Milena Minkova and Terence Tunberg write: "John Traupman is especially well-known as the author of Conversational Latin and The New College Latin and English Dictionary."
In his review of Conversational Latin (4th ed.), Akihiko Watanabe wrote:
Traupman's Conversational Latin for Oral Proficiency has been a popular introductory reference and exercise text in U.S. Latin-speaking circles since its publication... Traupman and his assistants must be thanked for their fantastic contribution in facilitating one's entry to the community of Latin users.
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