webb

IPA/ˌweb ˌel.ɪs ˈkʌp/
KK[wˈɛb]IPA/ˌweb ˌelɪs ˈkʌp/

webb — noun

1. (1858–1943) British social researcher and reformer who studied poverty in Victor

1.nounB2
Definition

(1858–1943) British social researcher and reformer who studied poverty in Victorian England. Beatrice Webb, born Beatrice Potter, co-founded the Fabian Society, an organisation that pushed for gradual, democratic socialist change rather than revolution. She also helped create the London School of Economics with her husband Sidney Webb.

Example

Beatrice Webb interviewed hundreds of factory workers for her 1891 study of the London poor.

historical research context

Beatrice Webb's diaries, kept from age fifteen, give historians a clear view of Victorian social reform.

Usage Note

Beatrice Webb was a key member of the Fabian Society alongside George Bernard Shaw and H. G. Wells. Her research methods — interviewing workers directly and collecting detailed data — were unusual for a woman of her social class in Victorian England. Students often encounter her name in sociology and British history courses.

2. (1859–1947) British socialist politician and writer, created the 1st Baron Passf

2.nounB2
Definition

(1859–1947) British socialist politician and writer, created the 1st Baron Passfield in 1929. Sidney Webb co-founded the Fabian Society in 1884 and the London School of Economics in 1895. As a government minister he helped shape early welfare policies, and his books on British local government and trade unions remain reference works.

Example

Sidney Webb tested Fabian ideas about public services while serving as a London county councillor.

local government experience before national politics

Sidney Webb wrote 'The History of Trade Unionism' with Beatrice, a standard reference for labour historians.

Usage Note

Sidney Webb is often mentioned alongside his wife Beatrice as 'the Webbs', a partnership that dominated British socialist thought for decades. Both were founding members of the Fabian Society, which argued that socialism could be achieved through democratic reforms and education rather than by revolution. In historical writing, Sidney Webb appears under either his birth name or his title, Lord Passfield.

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The surname 'Webb' comes from the Old English word 'webba', meaning 'weaver' — someone who weaves cloth. It was a common occupational name in medieval England, like 'Smith' for a blacksmith or 'Taylor' for a tailor. Beatrice Webb was born Beatrice Potter; her birth surname 'Potter' is also an English occupational name (for someone who made pots). She took the surname Webb when she married Sidney Webb in 1892.