| Abstract |
The Canones Lexicographici of 1860, a foundation document of the Oxford English Dictionary, propose an intimate logical connection between the etymology and the meaning of a word. This characteristic feature of nineteenth-century philology underpins the etymological fallacy, and is at odds with the principles of the dictionary, but has influenced certain aspects of its structure. It might be argued that an erroneous principle has been built into OED. However, the structural results of the proposed connection between etymology and meaning can be justified on pragmatic grounds; and the prominent role which etymologies play in the dictionary is not only pleasurable and instructive, but also makes it possible for the revised dictionary to locate English in a broader context of world language and culture than has been possible before. |
| BibTex |
@InProceedings{ELX96_1-041,
author = {John Considine},
title = {The Meanings, deduced logically from the Etymology},
pages = {378-383},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the 7th EURALEX International Congress},
year = {1996},
month = {aug},
date = {13-18},
address = {Göteborg, Sweden},
editor = {Martin Gellerstam, Jerker Järborg, Sven-Göran Malmgren, Kerstin Norén, Lena Rogström, Catalina Röjder Papmehl},
publisher = {Novum Grafiska AB},
isbn = {91-87850-14-1},
} |
