Abstract
This article seeks to establish the relationship and extent of similarity between two Sesotho dictionaries, published in the 1800s and 2005 respectively. The two dictionaries under discussion are the Sesuto–English Dictionary by Mabille and Dieterlen and Sethantso sa Sesotho by Hlalele. The former dictionary, like most dictionaries of other African languages pioneered by the missionaries, is bilingual. The latter dictionary is the first monolingual dictionary for Sesotho and it was compiled by a mother tongue-speaker of the language. The closeness of the content of the two dictionaries is established by applying the user-perspective approach as the framework of analysis. Through an analysis of the designs and entries in the two dictionaries, the study discovers similarities and differences in terms of the use of non-standard symbols and atypical sound patterning, illustrative phrases/sentences and obsolete or archaic words. Given the amount of obsolete items in Sethantso sa Sesotho , one of the recommendations emanating from this study is that Sethantso sa Sesotho be revised or that a new monolingual dictionary be produced which will include more modern words that will meet the needs of contemporary users.
Highlights
Background informationSesotho is a language spoken in Lesotho and in the Republic of South Africa (RSA)
This study focuses only on the dictionaries written in Lesotho orthography and the word 'Sesotho' refers to the language used strictly in Lesotho
It was found that the two dictionaries chosen for comparative analysis in this study, revealed pertinent differences and similarities. They are different in their typology since the Sesuto–English Dictionary is bilingual and was produced by missionaries while the Sethantšo sa Sesotho is monolingual and was compiled by a Sesotho mother-tongue speaker
Summary
Sesotho is a language spoken in Lesotho and in the Republic of South Africa (RSA). there is a Lesotho orthography and a South African orthography that is used respectively by the Basotho residing in these two countries. In Sesotho, like in other African languages, such as isiXhosa, the dictionaries compiled by the missionaries are still used as reliable and accessible sources (Mtuze 1992) These dictionaries contain several words that have become obsolete and their vocabulary is limited because many words which are currently used do not occur in such dictionaries. The changes were motivated by various factors such as time, technological advances, language changes, and the borrowing and creation of new words (Rundell 2008) It is necessary for Basotho scholars to come together and compile Sesotho dictionaries as a group and not as individuals. The research seeks to determine, amongst others, if the new Sesotho monolingual dictionary has moved beyond the older one by incorporating the new words that have entered Sesotho and to establish if the dictionary meets the needs of the contemporary users
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