French lexicographer and philosopher Émile Littré died #OTD in 1881.
He is best known for his comprehensive work on the French language, the "Dictionnaire de la langue française". This dictionary remains a cornerstone of French lexicography, known for its comprehensive treatment of the language, including historical usage, etymology, and quotations from literature.
American lexicographer, editor, and author Noah Webster died #OTD in 1843.
His early contributions to education include a series of textbooks known collectively as the "Blue-Backed Speller." His first dictionary, A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language, was published in 1806. However, his most significant achievement came with the publication of An American Dictionary of the English Language in 1828.
"Language is the expression of ideas, and if the people of one country cannot preserve an identity of ideas they cannot retain an identity of language."
A Dictionary of the English Language: Intended to Exhibit... : in Two Volumes (ed. 1832)
~Noah Webster Jr. (October 16, 1758 – May 28, 1843)
It drives me crazy when people say "refute" when they mean "reject" or "repudiate".
But just wait, if the trend continues for another decade or two, the dictionaries will say it's an accepted secondary meaning. Another word will have lost its precision and communication become less clear.
** 8 encyclopedias
** 2 #dictionaries
** 2 thesauruses
** 5 editions of The Guinness Book of World Records
** Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl
** The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
** Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile
As a people, we are really dumb. But not dumb enough, apparently.
One of the reasons my local branch of the #TulsaLibrary is my favorite is the American Indian Resource Center located at #ZarrowLibrary. (& of course the location)
I perused it & was astounded at the amount of DVDs, language #dictionaries, and native #newspapers that were there. Absolute treasure. You should take the time to go check it out. #NativeAmerican#native
What makes a new word successful? My latest story for @medium , on Merriam-Webster's latest additions, words of the year, and “enshittification.” (Friend link)
Here’s the latest outrage from me in my small self-constructed #linguistic / #lexicographic hell. I have spent three years making dictionaries for SANLU, an independent company that stepped in to help produce #indigenouslanguage#dictionaries because the state completely failed to do so (despite constitutional imperatives). Now this is happening - see attached pics.
Ngisenhlangweni yobulimiziningi eUFS eBloemfontein kuleli viki, kodwa kunokuningi okungumbhuqo nehlazo la. // I am at a conference on #multilingualism at UFS in Bloemfontein this week, but there is much that is ironic and disgraceful here. #languages#academia#IsiZulu
I'm now expanding my collection of bilingual #dictionaries by including (for the first time) some #conlangs . Any recommendations on which other (printed) dictionaries I should add?