Q: dictionary of HL

[Larry Trask]

I have just been commissioned to write a dictionary of historical and
comparative linguistics.  The (strict) word limit is 150,000 words,
which I estimate at about 380 standard-sized pages, or maybe 400.
And I am seeking advice as to what to include.
 
Naturally, the top priority is the terms which are found in standard
textbooks.  But I expect to have space to include a fair number of
further terms, and my question is this: which additional terms would
it be most helpful to include.
 
There are very many other terms that might be considered.  Here are
some examples.
 
(1) More-or-less obsolete terms found in the older literature
(`proethnic', `tenues', `Kreislauf').
 
(2) Technical terms from the study of IE (`hysterodynamic
inflection', `vrddhi').
 
(3) Technical terms from the study of other languages (`rendaku',
`Meeussen's Law').
 
(4) German terms sometimes used in English even when English
equivalents are in use (`Wanderwort', `Ausnahmslosungkeit').
 
(5) Names of dead languages (`Iberian', `Lepontic').
 
(6) Names of significant ancient texts and inscriptions (`Appendix
Probi', `Orkhon inscriptions').
 
(7) Names of scripts and writing systems (`Linear B', `cuneiform').
 
(8) Terms introduced by sociolinguists studying language change
(`Bill Peters effect', `near-merger') (this group is very large, but
arguably central).
 
(9) The simply enormous number of terms coined (or borrowed from
other fields) by individual authors in recent years, some (but not
all) of which will undoubtedly become established (`metatypy',
`residual zone', `exaptation', `gram', `apomorphy').
 
(10) Names of recently proposed principles (`Aoristic Drift
Principle', `Upper Exit Principle').
 
(11) Anything else you can think of.
 
It is intended that the book should be useful to students who have
some background in linguistics but who are approaching the study of
HL for the first time, but we also want it, within the limits of the
space available, to be as useful as possible to advanced students and
even professional practitioners.
 
So: what terms would you *most* like to see in the dictionary?
Please bear in mind that space is limited, and there is no
possibility of including even 10% of all the terms that might
conceivably be included.
 
Please reply to me personally, and I'll publish a summary to
HISTLING.
 
Larry Trask
COGS
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9QH
England
 
larryt at cogs.susx.ac.uk