James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (1740-1795), was a Scottish biographer and diarist, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for the biography he wrote of his friend and contemporary, Samuel Johnson, the English literary figure "The Life of Samuel Johnson" published in 1791which is commonly said to be the greatest biography written in the English language. His surname has passed into the English language as a term (Boswell, Boswellian, Boswellism) for a constant companion and observer, especially one who records those observations in print.

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