Profile of the Day: Louis Braille

Happy World Braille Day! Today the world celebrates the birth of Louis Braille, the man who created a system of reading and writing for the blind and visually impaired. Known simply as braille, the system is still used today by millions all around the world.

Image: Braille / New York Public Library

Braille was born on January 4, 1809 in Coupvray, France to Simon-René Braille and Monique Baron. At the age of 3, Braille injured his eye with an awl while in his father’s shop. The injury led to an infection that spread to his other eye, leaving him completely blind. Despite his disability, Braille excelled in school and became an accomplished musician.

He was inspired to create a better system of reading and writing for the blind after a visit from French Army soldier Charles Barbier at his school, the Royal Institute for Blind Youth. Barbier shared how the army used a communication system called “night writing,” which used a code of dots and dashes impressed to thick paper to silently communicate on the battlefield without light. By the age of 15, Braille had developed his own raised-dot system. With his six-dot system, readers could easily recognize letters with a single touch of a finger.

The system was not implemented at the Royal Institute until two years after Braille’s death in 1852. Its use quickly spread around the world and is still used by millions to this day.

Explore Luis Braille’s family tree on Geni and share your connection to the French inventor.

View Louis Braille’s Geni Profile