Allen Mawer was born at Bow, London on 8 May 1879. He was born the second child and eldest son of five children, to George Henry Mawer of South Hackney and Clara Isabella Allen. His father was a commercial traveller in fancy trimmings and secretary of the Country Towns' Mission. Mawer's parents were of strong religious feeling and Mawer received a thorough education in literature and history from his parents at an early age.
Education
Mawer entered Coopers' Company Grammar School at the age of ten, where he won a scholarship at the end of his first term. In 1897 he sat as an external candidate for an Honours Degree in English at London University, obtaining a First Class in his examination. Mawer entered University College London in 1898 as a graduate, where he was the Morley Medallist. Mawer entered Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge in October 1901 as a foundation scholar, residing there for three years, obtaining a double mark of distinction in the English sections of the Medieval and Modern Languages Tripos. Supported by a Research Studentship given to him by the College, Mawer spent the next year studying Norse activity in England, in particular the subject of Norse place-names.
Career
In October 1905, Mawer was appointed Lecturer in English at the University of Sheffield. A few weeks later, after having his thesis on this subject examined by experts, Mawer was elected to a fellowship by Gonville and Caius College, which he held until 1911. In 1908 he was elected to the Joseph Cowen Professorship of Language and Literature in Armstrong College, Newcastle, where he would remain for thirteen years. In 1909 he married Lettice, daughter of Rev. C. Heath of Cheltenham, with whom he had four daughters, and a son who died in infancy. During his years at Armstrong College, Mawer devoted himself to studying Viking influence in England, in particular the subject of Scandinavian place-names. In 1921, Mawer became Baines Professor of the English Language at the University of Liverpool. During this time he continued his research on Norse place-names in England, working closely with Eilert Ekwall. In 1922, Mawer established the English Place-Name Society, which he would lead until his death. His research on this subject was of immense importance, and gained him widespread renown. He was awarded the Biennial Price for English Studies of the British Academy in 1929 in recognition of this work. In 1929, Mawer was elected Provost of University College London. One of the best known scholars of his generation, Mawer was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1930 and received the honour of knighthood in 1937. He was awarded an honorary D.C.L. from Durham University in 1937. Mawer was an honorary foreign member of the Royal Flemish Academy. Combined with his responsibilities at University College London, Mawer served as President of the Modern Language Association from 1929 to 1939, President of the Philological Society in 1936, and Vice-President of the Viking Society. He was a contributor to the Encyclopædia Britannica on articles about Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian subjects. With the outbreak of World War II, the College was dispersed to various parts of England and Wales. His strenuous efforts to hold the College together during wartime took a heavy toll on Mawer's health, and on 22 July 1942 he collapsed and died suddenly on a train in Broxbourne while on his way to a meeting of a committee in London.
Personal life
Mawer married Lettice Mona Kathleen Heath on 8 July 1909. She was the daughter of the Rev. Christopher Heath of Wellesley Court, Cheltenham, who was Vicar of Hucclecote, Gloucestershire. The couple had four daughters, and a son who died in infancy.
