Editing Louis Braille (section)

==Legacy==
Because of the overwhelming insistence of the blind pupils, Braille's system was finally adopted by the Institute in 1854, two years after his death.<ref name=Farrell99>Farrell, p. 99.</ref><ref>Lorimer, pp. 26ff.</ref> The system spread throughout the French-speaking world, but was slower to expand in other places. However, by the time of the first all-European conference of teachers of the blind in 1873, the cause of braille was championed by Dr. [[Thomas Rhodes Armitage]] and thereafter its international use increased rapidly. By 1882, Dr. Armitage was able to report that "There is now probably no institution in the civilized world where braille is not used except in some of those in North America."<ref>Farrell, pp. 103–104.</ref> Eventually even these holdouts relented: braille was officially adopted by schools for the blind in the United States in 1916, and a universal braille code for English was formalized in 1932.<ref name=Reynolds318>Reynolds, p. 318.</ref>

New variations in [[braille technology]] continue to grow, including such innovations as [[Refreshable Braille display|braille computer terminals]]; [[RoboBraille]] email delivery service; and [[Nemeth Braille]], a comprehensive system for mathematical and scientific notation. Almost two centuries after its invention, braille remains a system of powerful and enduring utility.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.brailleauthority.org/article/evolution_of_braille-part1.pdf |title=The Evolution of Braille |year=2011 |publisher=[[Braille Authority of North America]] |website=Braillauthority.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630085707/http://www.brailleauthority.org/article/evolution_of_braille-part1.pdf |archive-date=30 June 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

<gallery widths="200" heights="145">
File:Interior of Panthéon 9, Paris 29 September 2012.jpg|Tomb of Louis Braille, above that of [[Jean Perrin]]
File:Louis Braille, Panthéon de Paris 2012-10-11.jpg|alt=A stone bust of Braille with an audiotronic memorial plaque|Braille's memorial in [[Panthéon, Paris|the Panthéon]]
</gallery>

===Honors and tributes===
[[File:An Indian two rupee coin minted in honour of Louis Braille's 200th birth anniversary (1809-2009).jpg|thumb|An Indian two rupee coin minted in honour of Louis Braille's 200th birth anniversary (1809-2009)|alt=An Indian two rupee coin minted in honour of Louis Braille's 200th birth anniversary (1809–2009)]]

The immense personal legacy of Louis Braille was described in a 1952 essay by [[T. S. Eliot]]:

{{Quote|Perhaps the most enduring honor to the memory of Louis Braille is the half-conscious honor we pay him by applying his name to the script he invented – and, in this country [England], adapting the pronunciation of his name to our own language. We honor Braille when we speak of ''braille''. His memory has in this way a security greater than that of the memories of many men more famous in their day.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Eliot |first=T.S. |author-link=T.S. Eliot |date=December 1952 |title=Some thoughts on Braille |journal=The New Outlook for the Blind |volume=46 |issue=10 |pages=287–288 }}</ref>}}

Braille's childhood home in Coupvray is a [[Monument historique|listed historic building]] and houses the Louis Braille Museum.<ref name=Marsan/> A large monument to him was erected in the town square<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://louisbrailleschool.org/resources/pictures/coupvray/louis-braille-monument/ |title=Louis Braille Monument |year=1996 |publisher=Louis Braille School, Edmonds, WA |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170608222424/http://louisbrailleschool.org/resources/pictures/coupvray/louis-braille-monument/ |archive-date=8 June 2017 |url-status=dead |access-date=25 September 2011 }}</ref> which was itself renamed Braille Square.<ref>Farrell, p. 97.</ref> On the centenary of his death, his remains were moved to the [[Panthéon, Paris|Panthéon]] in Paris.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kugelmass |first=J. Alvin |date=24 February 1952 |title=That Those Who Are Blind May Read |page=BR26 |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1952/02/24/archives/that-those-who-are-blind-may-read.html |access-date=15 February 2014 |id={{ProQuest|112520405}}}}</ref> In a symbolic gesture, Braille's hands were left in Coupvray, reverently buried near his home.<ref>Mellor, p. 8.</ref><ref name="Jernigan">{{Cite web |url=http://www.blind.net/alternative-techniques/braille/facts-about-louis-brailles-birthplace.html |title=Facts About Louis Braille's Birthplace |author=Jernigan, Kenneth |author-link=Kenneth Jernigan |year=1995 |publisher=[[National Federation of the Blind]] |website=Blind.net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008032042/http://www.blind.net/alternative-techniques/braille/facts-about-louis-brailles-birthplace.html |archive-date=8 October 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Statues and other memorials to Louis Braille can be found around the world. He has been commemorated in postage stamps worldwide,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nuessel |first=Frank |date=November 1985 |title=Louis Braille Helped the Sightless to See |journal=[[The American Philatelist]] |volume=99 |pages=1005–1007 }}</ref> and the [[asteroid]] [[9969 Braille]] was named for him in 1992.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schmadel |first=Lutz D. |author-link=Lutz D. Schmadel |author2=International Astronomical Union |title=Dictionary of minor planet names |year=2003 |publisher=Springer-Verlag |location=Berlin; New York |isbn=978-3-540-00238-3 |page=715 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KWrB1jPCa8AC&pg=PA715 }}</ref> The ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' lists him among the "100 Most Influential Inventors Of All Time".<ref>{{Cite book |title=The 100 Most Influential Inventors of All Time |editor-last=McKenna |editor-first=Amy |year=2010 |publisher=Britannica Educational Publishing |location=New York |isbn=9781615300426 |pages=94–96 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GbmcAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA94 }}</ref>

A [[Google Doodle]] for Louis Braille's 197th birthday in 2006 was shown on Google's homepage, spelling "Google" in braille.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Louis Braille's 107th Birthday Doodle - Google Doodles |url=https://doodles.google/doodle/louis-brailles-107th-birthday/ |access-date=17 August 2024 |website=doodles.google |language=en}}</ref>

The 200th anniversary of Braille's birth in 2009 was celebrated throughout the world by exhibitions and symposiums about his life and achievements. Among the commemorations, Belgium and Italy struck 2-euro coins, India released a set of two commemorative coins (Rs 100 and Rs 2), and the USA struck a one dollar coin, all in Braille's honor.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nbbmuseum.be/2009/10/2euro.htm |title=New 2-euro commemorative coin on display in the Museum |year=2009 |publisher=National Bank of Belgium |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171109070841/http://www.nbbmuseum.be/en/2009/10/2euro.htm |archive-date=9 November 2017 |url-status=dead |access-date=22 March 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.thebrailroom.com/invented-brail/italy-2-euro-commemorative-coin-2009-louis-braille-wmv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402232025/http://www.thebrailroom.com/invented-brail/italy-2-euro-commemorative-coin-2009-louis-braille-wmv |archive-date=2 April 2012 |title=Italy 2 euro commemorative coin 2009 Louis Braille |year=2009 |publisher=Brailleroom }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.indianstampghar.com/2010/02/commemorative-coins-india-louis-braille/ |title=Commemorative Coins – India – Louis Braille |year=2010 |publisher=India Stamp Ghar |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019081313/https://www.indianstampghar.com/2010/02/commemorative-coins-india-louis-braille/ |archive-date=19 October 2017 |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.usmint.gov/coins/coin-medal-programs/commemorative-coins/louis-braille-bicentennial |title=Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar |date=2019 |publisher=United States Mint |website=USmint.gov |access-date=7 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708072711/https://www.usmint.gov/coins/coin-medal-programs/commemorative-coins/louis-braille-bicentennial |archive-date=8 July 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[World Braille Day]] is celebrated every year on Braille's birthday, 4 January, since 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://nfb.org/blog/celebrate-world-braille-day-raising-awareness |title=Celebrate World Braille Day by Raising Awareness |date=2 January 2018 |publisher=National Federation of the Blind |website=Nfb.org |access-date=8 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412190546/https://nfb.org/blog/celebrate-world-braille-day-raising-awareness |archive-date=12 April 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N18/448/71/PDF/N1844871.pdf|title=United Nations – Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 17 December 2018}}</ref>

===In popular culture===
Because of his accomplishments as a young boy, Braille holds a special place as a hero for children, and he has been the subject of a large number of works of juvenile literature.<ref>See [http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=kw%3ALouis+Braille&fq=mt%3Ajuv&qt=advanced&dblist=638 ''Worldcat.org''] for a complete list of Braille-related literature for children and young adults.</ref> Other appearances in the arts include the American TV special ''Young Heroes: Louis Braille'' (2010);<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://deaftvchannel.com/blog/interesting-films/young-heroes-louis-braille/ |title=Young Heroes: Louis Braille |year=2010 |publisher=Deaftvchannel.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222035202/http://deaftvchannel.com/blog/interesting-films/young-heroes-louis-braille/ |archive-date=22 February 2014 }}</ref> the French TV movie ''Une lumière dans la nuit'' (2008) (released in English as ''The Secret of Braille'');<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1342341/ |title=''Une lumière dans la nuit'' (TV 2008) |date=3 May 2008 |publisher=IMDb |access-date=15 February 2014 }}</ref> and the dramatic play ''Braille: The Early Life of Louis Braille'' (1989) by Lola and Coleman Jennings.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Jennings |first1=Lola H. |last2=Jennings |first2=Coleman A. |title=Braille: the early life of Louis Braille|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V_O3x1E2Xe8C |year=1989|publisher=Dramatic Publishing|isbn=978-1-58342-426-1}}</ref> In music, Braille's life was subject of the song ''Merci, Louis'', composed by the Halifax singer-songwriter Terry Kelly, chair of the Canadian Braille Literacy Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://terry-kelly.com/special-projects/merci-louis/ |title=Terry Kelly: Merci, Louis |publisher=Deaftvchannel.com |access-date=7 March 2016 }}</ref> ''The Braille Legacy'', a musical which tells the story of Louis Braille, directed by [[Thom Southerland]] and starring [[Jérôme Pradon]], debuted at the [[Charing Cross Theatre]] in April 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://charingcrosstheatre.co.uk/theatre/the-braille-legacy |title=The Braille Legacy |website=Charing Cross Theatre |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002050008/http://charingcrosstheatre.co.uk/theatre/the-braille-legacy |archive-date=2 October 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>