NICOLAI, CIIRISTOPII FRIEDII„ a celebrated German author, bookseller, and pub lisher, was b. Mar. 18, 1733, at Berlin, where his father was also a bookseller. He devoted himself very earnestly to literary and philosophical studies, and early distin guished himself by his Briefe fiber den jetzigc n Zustand der Wissenschaften (Berl. 1756),h which he exposed the errors of both Gottscbed and Bodmer, then carrying on a controversy which was agitating the literary world of Germany. He became the asso ciate of Lessing and Moses Mendelssohn. Jointly -vith the latter lie edited for sane time the admirable Bibliothek der sclionen 1Vissenschaften (Leip. 1757-58); and with Les sing, he gave to the world Briefe, die neueste deutsche Dderatur betreffend (24 vols. Berl. 1759-65). By this he was led to conceive the plan of the Allgemeine deutsche Bibliothek (106 vols. 1765-92), a periodical which he edited for many years, and which contributed much, particularly in the early period of its existence, to the progress of literature and improvement of taste in Germany, but was too frequently characterized by an undue acerbity of tone. Nicolai's hostility to the new schools of literature and philosophy,
which sprang up in Germany, exposed him to attacks from the pens of Herder, Goethe, Schiller, Lavater, and Fichte. His death took place Jan. 8, 1811.
Among Nicolai's works may be mentioned his Topographisch-historische Beschreibung von Berlin and Potsdam (Berl. 1769, 3d edit. 1786); Charaeteristischen Anecdoten von Friedrich II. (Berl. 1788-92), both of permanent value; some novels, as his Leben find Meinungen des Magisters Sebaldus Nothanker (4th edit. Berl. 1799); Geschichte eines dicken _Vannes, a sharply satirical performance (2 vols. Berl. 1794); Beschnibung diner Ileise (birch Deutschland und die Schweiz (Berl. 1781; 3d. edit. 12 vols. 1788-96); an autobiog raphy, published in the Bildnisse jetzt lebender Berliner Gelehrten; and a work entitled Ueber mein gelehrte Bildung, fiber mein Kenntniss der Critischen Philosophic find mein Schrif ten dieselbe betreffend (Berl. 1799).