A.P. Cowie. English Dictionaries for Foreign Learners: A History

Phillip Louw

doi:10.5788/15-0-24

Abstract

In the mid 1990s the evolution of the English learner's dictionary reached a zenith with the appearance on the market of four advanced-level monolingual learners' dictionaries. Three of these were existing works, i.e. the Oxford Ad-vanced Learner's Dictionary of Current English (henceforth ALD), the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (henceforth LDOCE) and the Collins CO-BUILD English Language Dictionary (henceforth COBUILD), which marked, to differing extents, significant departures from the lexicographical procedures followed by their predecessors. The last one, the Cambridge International Dic-tionary of English (henceforth CIDE), was a completely new dictionary. This highly productive burst of lexicographical energy was also the catalyst for an even more productive and sustained body of metalexicographical research and writing that dealt with the topic of learners' dictionaries.

Highlights

In the mid 1990s the evolution of the English learner's dictionary reached a zenith with the appearance on the market of four advanced-level monolingual learners' dictionaries
The plethora of books on learner lexicography can broadly be categorised as belonging to two main groups: those dealing with "research on dictionary use" (Wiegand 1984: 15) and those providing "criticism of dictionaries" (Wiegand 1984: 15)
Cowie's English Dictionaries for Foreign Learners: A History is a valuable contribution to the field of metalexicographical research and writing that deals with the topic of learners' dictionaries, as it provides a point of departure for both research on dictionary use and dictionary criticism

Summary

Introduction

In the mid 1990s the evolution of the English learner's dictionary reached a zenith with the appearance on the market of four advanced-level monolingual learners' dictionaries. The plethora of books on learner lexicography can broadly be categorised as belonging to two main groups: those dealing with "research on dictionary use" (Wiegand 1984: 15) and those providing "criticism of dictionaries" (Wiegand 1984: 15).

Results

Conclusion