Didot, the name of a celebrated family of French printers and publishers.—FRANÇOIS DIDOT (1689-1757) was the first of the family that attained eminence. His principal professional achievement was the publication of the Voyages of his friend the Abbé Prévost, a work in 20 volumes, perfect as regards the text, and enriched with a great number of engravings. Two of his sons, FRANÇOIS AMBROISE (1730-1804) and PIERRE FRANÇOIS (1732-1795), also acquired distinction as printers, the former publishing editions of the Delphin classics, while the latter improved the typefounding and paper-making arts.—HENRI (1765-1852), eldest son of Pierre François, made himself famous as an engraver and letter-founder, producing very beautiful 'microscopic' types.—PIERRE, eldest son of François Ambroise (1760-1853), still further increased the fame of the family. His Louvre editions of Virgil, Horace, Racine, and La Fontaine are magnificent; and he it was who published Boileau's works and Voltaire's Henriade.
He was himself an author.—His brother, FIRMIN (1764–1836), as a printer, and especially as an engraver and founder, raised the family name to the pinnacle of professional eminence. The perfect Roman characters, used in the Louvre editions printed by his elder brother, were engraved and cast by him. He revived and developed the stereotyping process, and produced singularly perfect editions of many classical, French, and English works. He became a deputy, and obtained some reputation as an author by his tragedies, La Reine de Portugal and La Mort d'Annibal, and several volumes of metrical translations from the classics.—Firmin's sons, AMBOISE FIRMIN (1790–1876) and HYACINTHE FIRMIN (1794–1880), aided by their sons, sustained the credit of the Paris house as Firmin Didot Frères; and the business still thrives under the present representatives. See the books on the family by Werdet (1864), Bnnel (1871), and Wallon (1886).