Fw: [Lexicog] How much theory in a dictionary?

Wayne Leman wayne_leman at SIL.ORG
Tue Jan 13 00:25:58 UTC 2004


----- Original Message -----
From: "Wayne Leman" <wayne_leman at sil.org>
To: <lexicographylist at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 06, 2004 9:17 AM
Subject: [Lexicog] How much theory in a dictionary?


> Jess, I don't mean this to sound simplistic, but part of the answer is who
> the dictionary audience is. If it is for linguists, there is a place for
> nearly encyclopedic information, including on semantic associations,
> networks, frames, phonosemantics, etc. Of course, today's semantic models
> may not be nearly as salient twenty years from now, just as other semantic
> models have come and gone, so a certain amount of caution can be exercised
> to avoid lexical entries being bound too closely to a theoretical model
> which may not be understood (or accepted) by future readers. (On the other
> hand, there is also a place for riding today's waves for today's
theorists,
> just as is done in theory-specific dissertations.) If the dictionary is
for
> the native language speakers, the lexicographer must work with those
> speakers to discover what format and content they prefer and benefit most
> by.
>
> Wayne
> -----
> Wayne Leman
> Busby, Montana, U.S.A.
> Cheyenne dictionary project:
> http://www.geocities.com/cheyenne_language/cddicy.htm
>
> > The issue of lexicological issues having been brought up, I am
> > wondering just how far afield from generally accepted norms one can
> > or should go in the format for a dictionary. Not everyone accepts the
> > cognitivist p.o.v.  I keep thinking of the many generativist-flavored
> > grammars that appeared in the '60's and '70's that look quaint now,
> > having been overly concerned with Chomskyan issues at the expense of
> > a more normal (approx. Dixon's "basic") coverage of topics.
> >
> <snip>
>
> > So where to draw the line before we become too deeply mired in
> > particular theories associated with successive levels? This goes to
> > issues of semantic domains, metaphor, etc. as well.
> >
> > Jess Tauber
>
>
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