The Germanic Languages Other than English from c. 1700

Abstract

There are different sorts of dictionaries used within a language community. Monolingual dictionaries usually play the most significant role in the standardization of a (young) language, while bilingual ones mostly foster interlingual communication following situations of language contact. Monolingual dictionaries are usually large; they are aimed at the standard variety of a language and are usually available in different editions for different users; they are almost always written by native speakers. Bilingual wordlists at an earlier stage in history are written by persons not belonging to the language community. Later on, when the monolingual standard dictionary has been established, bilingual lexicography often yields another type of dictionary. These are written from inside the language community and are meant to promote comprehension in situations of language contact with other communities.