On World Braille Day, Know How This Frenchman Transformed Lives Of Blind & Visually Challenged People

Internationally recognised, World Braille Day is observed every year on January 4 in honour of Frenchman Louis Braille, who invented the braille system- a reading and writing technique for blind and visually impaired people. Through his invention, he transformed and impacted millions of lives and gave them the path to lead a better life.

The braille system, named after Louis Braille, is a form of language used by blind and visually impaired people. Braille code is a written language that uses raised dots to represent characters. Using the dots, a blind or visually challenged person can easily read or understand the texts. It has led them to become independent.

Know More About Louis Braille

He was born on January 4, 1809, in Coupvray, a small town in France. Louis' father, Simor-Rene, was a saddler and a leatherer. At age three, he met with an accident while playing in his father's workshop. It led to an injury in his eye, and he started losing eyesight and becoming blind at age five.

He attended the Royal Institution for Blind Youth in Paris, known for being the world's first-of-its-kind institute for blind students. The teachers used to teach the students about the techniques of reading a book by using embossed print letters.

Through his inquisitive mind and determination to learn more, he learned the 'night writing' in 1821. Being invented by Captain Charles Barbier in the French Army, it used dashes and dots on thick paper that can be interpreted by touch. He learned the 'night writing' technique and modified the same as per his own understanding. By age 15, he found a method of representing letters using six dots.

World Braille Day Celebrated Since 2019

After years of hard work and consistent dedication, he published his work on braille code in 1829, later adopted by other countries worldwide.

According to Wikipedia, he always believed that "Access to communication in the widest sense is access to knowledge, and that is vitally important for us if we [the blind] are not to go on being despised or patronized by condescending sighted people. We do not need pity, nor do we need to be reminded we are vulnerable. We must be treated as equals – and communication is the way this can be brought about."

People with visual challenges found it effective, and it transformed their lives. In honour of Louis Braille, the United Nations General Assembly in 2019 marked his date of birth to observe the day as World Braille Day internationally.

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