To List or Not to List: Writing a Dictionary of a Language Undergoing Rapid and Extensive Lexical Changes

Abstract

A central consideration in compiling a dictionary and in deciding what to list is the prospective audience and its expectations. These issues are discussed here with respect to a bilingual dictionary of Toqabaqita, an Austronesian language spoken in the Solomon Islands. Two types of audience are identified, the local people and outside academics, together with the purposes the dictionary will be expected to serve. The lexicon of Toqabaqita has been significantly affected by profound socio-cultural changes and by universal bilingualism in Solomon Islands Pijin, an English-lexifier creole. A brief survey of dictionaries of other Austronesian languages shows that there is no uniformity of opinion among the lexicographers about the inclusion of loanwords. A principle for inclusion of Pijin loanwords in the Toqabaqita dictionary is discussed. While the principle is straightforward and easy to apply, it suggests that the lexicon of Toqabaqita has a well-defined circumference, which, however, is an idealization.