Fw: [Lexicog] semantic domains AND frames?

[Wayne Leman]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Wayne Leman" <wayne_leman at sil.org>
To: <lexicographylist at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, January 05, 2004 1:57 PM
Subject: [Lexicog] semantic domains AND frames?


> > From Fritz (+ 40 C. temperature) to Wayne (-32 C.)
>
> At midday we are now up to a balmy -19 C.  :-)
>
> > (Fritz)
> > Wayne, I assumed that you plan to do a bilingual SEMANTIC DOMAIN
> dictionary,
> > as you started out your question "Isn't it possible for semantic domains
> > ..."
> > Maybe my assumption was wrong.
>
> OK, now I understand, Fritz.
>
> No, we are doing a semantic domains dictionary this time. We did one about
> ten years ago and the Cheyennes like it and use it a lot. I had done a
fair
> amount of study of Cheyenne folk taxonomies--I don't want to imply
anything
> negative by use of the word "folk" here; I am only referring to the
> *indigenous* semantic taxonomies of Cheyenne. I personally find the
various
> semantic domain catalogues which are extant to be interesting and probably
> helpful as a heuristic, but I prefer not to use those "outsider" domains
> within a dictionary--unless research shows them to be valid semantic
> categories of the worldview of the speakers of that language. I believe
that
> a lexicon should be described, as much as possible, from the point of view
> of the speakers of that language. Of course, there is, in our changing
> world, often not a single monolithic worldview, and folk taxonomies
undergo
> change due to pressure from the worldviews of those speaking national
> languages, westernized education, etc.
>
> > But, if so, then which kind? If it were something like Louw/Nida's
> > "Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament based on Semantic Domains",
> > then I would have as the first question how these domains were
> established.
>
> Good question. I can't answer it for L&N, but only for myself and
Cheyenne.
> I can say that I have tried to use the semantic domains which Cheyennes
use.
> One of the most common techniques for discovering what domain a lexical
item
> belongs in is to ask native speakers (in their language, of course), "Is
> this a ____?" where the blank is filled in by a vernacular superordinate
> semantic term.
>
> > My guess is that componential analysis (CA) was used, but CA is
> questionable
> > as a heuristic device.
> > In a monolingual semantic domains dictionary one can use indigenous
> > semantic taxonomies which are more likely to reflect emic semantic
fields.
>
> True, but I see no reason why indigenous semantic taxonomies cannot also
be
> used in bilingual dictionaries, as long as it is made clear that semantic
> categories are from the viewpoint of the language being studied.
>
> >
> > Or maybe, your dictionary follows a traditional approach to
lexicographic
> > description using a headword as central to the organization of the
> > dictionary and listing the different senses associated with the headword
> > in a lexical entry. For each of the individual senses associated with
> > the headword, in such a traditional dictionary information is listed
> > about its meaning, its usage, register, etc.
> > Information about usage and synonyms are pointers to semantic fields.
> > (but such a dictionary does not qualify as a "semantic domains
> dictionary").
>
> Correct. And our current dictionary basically uses this approach. We did a
> concise "student dictionary" 28 years ago. Later came a semantic domains
> dictionary. Now we are trying to do an exhaustive dictionary of the
> language, with as many lexical relationships noted as possible. We are
using
> Shoebox to manage the database. We have fields for language usage
> (obsolescing, archaic, register, taboo, etc.), antonyms, synonyms,
> derivationally related forms, etc.
>
> >
> > I just don't know what kind of dictionary you are working on.
> >
> > Sooner or later we will have to define our terms on this list
> > (like "semantic domains", etc.)
>
> I agree. Do we have any lexicographers of meta-lexicographical terms on
this
> discussion list who would like to define some key terms of our discipline?
>
> Wayne
> -----
> Wayne Leman
> Busby, Montana, U.S.A.
> Cheyenne dictionary project:
> http://www.geocities.com/cheyenne_language/cddicy.htm
>
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