Glottopedia, the free online encyclopedia of linguistics

[Peter Hook]

Dear Professor Haspelmath,

 >> The answer is simple: <<


I beg to differ: The answer is not simple.

>> we'd have a resource where I can get a complete list of
references published on a given (smaller) language, or by a given
linguist, or a complete list of all BLS conferences with the conference
program, etc., and it is quite possible that such a resource can be
achieved by the combined efforts of linguists. <<

Isn't Linglist doing this already?

>> Given its goals, Wikipedia has to limit its scope: In the category of
biographical articles, for instance, it admits only articles about
"notable" people. Glottopedia has no such constraints: It can have
articles about all linguists, including e.g. all those forgotten
speaker-linguists that have made such an enormous contribution to our
field but are not even known to most linguists because they don't show
up at conferences and rarely get their names on publications (often
they're called "informants"). <<
This sounds like another service that Linglist - or SIL - provides - or can
provide.


> >> Wikipedia and Wiktionary are intended as reference
> works for lay people, whereas Glottopedia is intended as a reference
> work for specialists. The two groups of people clearly have different
> needs. I certainly wouldn't profit from Wikipedia articles written by
> physicists that discuss recent issues in solid-state physics, so I'm
> glad that Wikipedia articles are written for people like me. <<
>

Discussions by and for specialists of recent issues in a field are the usual
province of journals and on-line forums. Are you proposing that Glottopedia
be a forum for discussion? Isn't that also part of the mission of Linglist?

>> So although Wikipedia's scope is breathtaking and its success is
phenomenal, there is a need for reference information beyond Wikipedia. <<

I agree with the concessive: Wikipedia is phenomenal.  And breathtaking.
It also represents an enormous investment in the democraticization of
knowledge. So assuming that Glottopedia does take birth, in order to reduce
duplication of effort why not ask contributors to make sure that their
contributions to Glottopedia - where appropriate - also get put into
Wikipedia or Wiktionary?  And put the other kinds of information that
you have specified into Linglist?

Sincerely, Peter Hook
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