7.0
Purpose of Notation and Format: The user of a dictionary is not a lexicographer.
He does not read the dictionary as a novel from cover to cover but consults it
for some information usually about an individual entry. it is, therefore, not
sufficient for a lexicographer only to define the lexical units in a proper way
but also to present them in such a way that it is understood clearly and accurately.
For this every dictionary should have an organized system of notations. There
should be a proper presentation of entries and matters related to them so that
it is self-explanatory.
The
general structure of a dictionary is decided at the beginning of the work. Whatever
the type and size of the dictionary there are certain features common to all dictionaries.
Every dictionary has roughly three parts:
(j) the first part contains the
prefatorial matter, introduction and the reader's guide etc.
(ii) the second
part is the dictionary proper.
(ii) the third part contains the appendices,
supplementary material for providing additional information generally required
by and valuable to language learners.
This
part is not found in all dictionaries. The special dictionary usually do not contain
supplements. The notation in a dictionary might be grouped into two heads1.
(i) The
extra entry and
(ii) the entry proper
the
extra entry notations have the following components
a. Title
b. Preface
and Introduction
c. Reader's Guide
d. Abbreviations
e. Paginations
etc.
The
notation of the entry proper is related to the following:
a. Use of different
scripts and types of letters (of different points and cases)
b. Use of punctuations,
symbols, and spacing etc.
The
features of the entry proper are generally discussed in the introduction or the
reader's guide in the dictionary.
Title
: the title of the dictionary should be self explanatory and indicate clearly
the nature of the dictionary in terms of its being monolingual, bilingual, historical,
etymological, technical etc. it gives the first clue to the purpose and size of
the dictionary by some of its components eg. learner's, concise or sam?ks?ipta,
maanak, academic, encyclopaedic, vyavahaar or practical, pronouncing etc. Sometimes
some subtitles are added to elaborate the nature of the dictionary.
The
title page usually contains the number of words found in the dictionary.
7.1
Preface and Introduction2: These differ according to the types of dictionaries.
A general purpose dictionary does not lay as much emphasis on the historical aspect
of the language as a historical or an etymological dictionary does. Generally
all the dictionaries contain the following information in preface and introduction.
7.2
The purpose and scope of the dictionary: It gives the background for the preparation
of the dictionary, its aims and objectives and the need for such a dictionary.
the purpose of the dictionary describes as to whether it is a general dictionary
or a special dictionary and if special dictionary what are the criteria for its
speciality? What is the readership, for whom it is prepared, whether general reader
or special reader, the latte in case of etymological and other dictionaries and
whether the dictionary is made for a foreign language user or a native language
speaker?
As
for the scope of the dictionary, the introduction describes the coverage of the
dictionary in terms as to whether the dictionary deals with contemporary language
or it also contains archaic and obsolete words. Does it contain the lexical stock
of only the standard language or also has colloquialism and dialectalism and if
so what is the amount and nature of it? The amount of borrowed vocabulary is also
explained. Also given are indications about the inclusion of neologisms, especially
the vocabulary of recent cultural development.
7.3
Source of the dictionary: This action deals with the different sources, written
texts, inscriptions, manuscripts, newspapers and journals etc. from which the
data is excerpted. It also indicates if only the literary language texts have
been the source or the dictionary also contains lexical units from the spoken
language. Names of dictionaries, if use, are indicated. This portion is very important
for historical dictionaries. In these dictionaries the nature and scope of the
sources, the number of books etc., are discussed with details. there is usually
a subject-wise classified list of the different works, along with their dates,
from which data is collected3. for exegetic dictionaries the introduction might
give a note on the text, its various recensions and the basis of selection of
a particular version for the dictionary.
some
dictionaries contain a note on the earlier lexicographical works available with
a critical valuation. Sometimes, a brief history of the language is also given.
The etymological dictionaries contain a note on the cognate language.
Method of
compilation: this selection deals with the different phases in which the plan
of the work has been implemented and the different stages of its progress. The
problems related to the different stages e.g. collection of lexical units, setting
of entreis etc. are given. Here each dictionary presents its principles of compilation.
Problems related to the fixation of head word, the treatment of homonymy, polysemy
and synonymy, presentation of the grammatical information, script nd pronunciation
are described along with the manner in which they have been handled. Special features
of grammar, especially the irregularities, are also described. The introduction
might also contain the general principles of defining the words, the number and
order of meanings. a general note on illustrative quotations in terms of the criteria
of their selection, presentation and mode of reference is also given. Some dictionaries
present explanatory charts showing the different components of a dictionary viz.
Abbreviations, Cross references etc4.
In
case of comparatively lesser known languages, a brief account of the language
in terms of the number of its speakers, geographical distribution etc. is given.
In
a dialect dictionary might be given the process of the collection of vocables.
This might be accompanied by dialect maps.
7.4
Reader's Guide: Also called by other names 'how to use the dictionary?' or
'Notes on the use of the dictionary' or 'Explanatory notes', this is the most
important part of the introduciton5. it provides details of the various features
of the dictionary to enable the reader to use it properly. The different components
of the Reader's guide are usually the follwing:
7.4.1
The break up of the entry: It gives the method in which the entry is presented
e.g.
the
entry consists of the head word, pronunciation, grammatical category, definitions
etc.
7.4.2
Head Word : The nature of the head word is indicated. If there are variations
and alternative spellings, the manner of their presentation is noted. e.g.
"A
heavy black letter or a combination of heavy black letters (bold face type) set
flush with the left hand margin of each column of the type is the main entry6".
"Nouns
are given in their base forms (praatipadika) e.g. am?sa……………….,"7
7.4.3
Type of vocables included e.g.
"The following types of vocables are
included in the dictionary.
(i) Roots ……………….
(ii) Simple and derived words, (iii) technical terms etc."8
7.4.4
Script and Pronunciation: Usually dictionaries give a separate section, sometimes
an article by some authority in the field, for script and pronunciation. It is
required more in the dictionary for languages which have great difference in spelling
and pronunciation. In the dictionaries of languages where there are not so very
significant differences between graphemes and phonemes it need not be described
prominently.
7.4.5
Grammar and parts of Speech : It indicates the manner of the presentation
of the grammatical information. The paradigmatic irregularities e.g. plurals of
English9 are indicated. If some parts of speech have some special mode of presentation
it is also given e.g. verbs in Hornby and Malayalam Lexicon.
7.4.6.
Homonymy: how are they presented, separately or under the same entry and what
is the order of their arrangement, a fixed order of grammatical categories or
in order of primary and derived categories?
7.4.7
Polysemy: How are the main meanings and sub-meanings indicated?
"Bold
face Arabic numerals separate the senses of a word that has more than a single
sense e.g. X……………..1.2.3."10
"Mere
nuances of meanings or mere differences in denotatum is indicated by the use of
lower case Roman numbers I, II, III"11
7.4.8.
Labels: How are the labels used and for what purpose? This gives indications
of the different labels.
"
A status label in italics sometimes appears before a definition".12
"Syntactic
usage of a vocable is given in square brackets before the specific meanings, or
a group of citations"13
7.4.9
Cross references: The method and purpose of using cross reference are given
here. e.g. "cross references are added in the Dictionary to indicate a variant
spelling or a variant sound of a vocable e.g. akirtti or akiirti.14
7.4.10
Etymology: The method of giving etymology is indicated. e.g.
"The
etymology of a vocable is given in square bracket immediately after its parts
of speech"15
7.4.11
Illustrative examples: here are given the evidentory value of quotations,
the method of providing them (with or without citation) and the arrangement of
quotations.
"The
matter enclosed in a pair of angle brackets illustrates appropriate use of the
word in a context. The word being illustrated is replaced by a swung dash…….".16
7.4.12
Glosses: The process of giving glosses is illustrated here. "A negative
form of a word used for a normal positive concept is first given in the negative
form followed by the positive words in brackets with the use i.e. akunt?haagra
'unblunted' (i.e. sharp)".17
7.5
Guide to Pronunciation: this portion describes in detail the pronunciation
of all sounds in isolation or in combinations. The pronunciation is shown in actual
occurrences. Generally a chart showing phonetic value of each symbol is given.
If it is a bilingual dictionary, a description of the phonemic system of the two
languages is given with corresponding pairs in the two languages.
There
is a chart showing the order of alphabets in the dictionary.
Dictionaries
provide catch words usually at the top of the page showing the first and last
entries on the page.
In
some dictionaries more difficult and typical sounds are shown on all the pages
usually in a line at the bottom of the page.
The
introduction usually contains a list of the staff members, contributors, consultants
etc.
7.6
Abbreviations: Each dictionary uses abbreviations because the matter is to
be presented in a concise and compact form and for saving space. Generally the
abbreviations show the following:
(1) Labels; grammatical, subject and status
labels.
(2) Names of languages and different dialects treated in the dictionary,
the cognate and non-cognate languages whose forms are given in etymological and
historical dictionaries.
(3) Some very frequently and commonly occurring
words in the dictionary e.g. part (icular), esp (ecially), sb (somebody), sth
(something) ka (ranaa), 'to go' etc.
(4) Works cited. This may be grouped
in different ;
(j) Works from which examples are given,
(ii) Reference
works, like other dictionaries and works quoted for comparison and reference,
(5) Authors and consultants, if quoted.
(6) Other abbreviations as might
be used by the lexicographer.
7.7.
Use of Punctuations and Symbols: A dictionary uses punctuation marks of different
types. Care should be taken to use these marks as properly and accurately as possible
because these signs are very significant in expressing the meaning of every word.
a comma may not be significant in a running text but in a dictionary it has a
vital role. Saving of the comma in an entry would result in the saving of a lot
of space and money.
7.7.1
Some of the punctuation marks used in the dictionary are the following:
, Comma,
usually separates nuances of meanings of the entry word,
; semicolon, used
to distinguish major meanings,
- em dash, used for nesting,
~ swung
dash, also used for nesting,
This
is just a specimen to show how signs are used in a dictionary. There are other
signs used for different purposes in different types of dictionaries. A lexicographer
can use any number of signs but he should be careful to see that there is a consistency
in the use of these signs. The other signs used are:
:
Colon, . full stop, ? signs of interrogation, ! sign of exclamation, ( ) parenthesis,
[ ] brackets, " " inverted commas, * asterisk, § selection marker,
† dagger, = diagonal lines, paragraph, / oblique, ? arrows etc.
Besides
these signs, the regular diacritic marks are also described with examples from
the body of the dictionary.
7.7.2
Numerals and alphabets are also used as signs in dictionaries. The Arabic
numerals are used for showing separate entries for homonyms and major meanings
of polysemous words. The Roman numerals are used to indicate nuances of meanings.
But there is no rigid rule about this. Alphabets are used to distinguish sub-senses.
These might be used for any other purpose also.
7.7.3
Spacing: in order to avoid confusion in the presentation of various items
of the entry, proper spacing should be provided. Single or double spacing is used
to separate entries.
7.7.4
Types: In order to make distinction between different components of the entry
different types are used for different purposes. Usually the head word is printed
in bold types. The sub-entries are also printed in the same type. The variations
of the headword are also printed in bold types and are separated by ~ or are given
in brackets. The meaning and other information are printed in smaller points.
Italics are used for showing labels or run-on entries.
In
the languages where there is a distinction between capital and small letters the
lexicographer has to be very careful about the use of capital letters.
Sometimes
script is also changed usually in bilingual dictionaries for giving pronunciation
of these words.
Notation
in a bilingual dictionary does not differ essentially from that in a monolingual
dictionary. In a bilingual dictionary usually the front matter is given in both
the source and the target language. Here information, not only of the source language,
but also of the target language is given in terms of its history, writing system,
pronunciation etc. The principles and the method of presenting equivalents are
given. It would be useful if the dictionary presents a brief grammatical sketch
of the two languages, thus providing a contrastive grammar.
7.8.
Appendices: Different types of appendices are given in different dictionaries.
These give weights and measurements, geographical and other names (especially
in bilingual dictionaries).
Appendices
can be used to give together words derived from the same root which are otherwise
scattered at different places because of the alphabetical order. But this is practicable
only for smaller dictionaries. In some languages different verbs are used to indicate
the same action with different objects and instruments. These could be given in
the appendix with advantage.18 For little known languages, a list of typical cultural
items in the language might be given for the benefit of a foreign reader.
The American
collegiate dictionaries contain a number of appendices, some of which are articles
on different types of words and lexicographic features. The American College Encyclopaedic
Dictionary has a supplement of 300 pages.
Some
dictionaries give suffixes and prefixes, word formation rules etc. in appendices.18
7.9
Format: The format of the dictionary should be attractive and eye pleasing.
The choice and alignment of types should be done properly. The types should be
uniform. Typographical errors should be kept to the minimum. The volumes should
not be very bulky. The different scripts and types should be matching, so that
the reader gets the information at the very first attempt. There should be no
difference in the paper of the dictionary. Over and above everything, uniformity
and consistency should be adhered to throughout the dictionary with utmost care
and even, to say, vigilence.
NOTES
1. Some
of these points were presented and discussed by participants of the National Workshop-sum-Seminar
on Lexicography, Trivandrum 1977.
2.
In some dictionaries they are given separately.
3.
It also includes an outline of the writing system of the language, the spelling
rules and exceptions to them.
4.
Webster's III.
5.
In some dictionaries it is not given separately.
6.
Webster's III p. 16.a.
7.
Sanskrit Dictionary (Poona) LXXXII.
8.
Ibid LXXXII.
9.
Webster's III has a chapter on it.
10.
Webster's III 17a.
11.
Sanskrit Dictionary (Poona) LXXXIV
12.
Webster's III 18a.
13.
Sanskrit Dictionary (Poona) LXXXV
14.
Ibid LXXXV
15.
Webster's III 18a.
16.
Ibid 19a.
17.
Sanskrit Dictionary (Poona) LXXXV
18.
Multilingual dictionaries prepared by the Central Institute of Indian Languages,
Mysore contain such appendieces, e.g. Ao Naga English Hindi Dictionary, Kuvi Oriya
English Hindi Dictionary, Kokborok Bengali English Hindi Dictionary etc.