Forensic Dictionary Analysis: Principles and Practice

Authors: Coleman, Julie; Ogilvie, Sarah

Source: International Journal of Lexicography, Volume 22, Number 1, 11 March 2009 , pp. 1-22(22)

Publisher: Oxford University Press

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Abstract:

Lexicographers often provide an account of their working practices and policies, and reviewers and researchers generally take this on trust. Forensic dictionary analysis uses evidence-based methodologies to interrogate the dictionaries themselves about decision-making processes involved in their compilation. The version of events that this reveals is sometimes quite different from compilers' accounts. This paper builds on a variety of approaches in historical dictionary research—statistical, textual, contextual, and qualitative—to present forensic dictionary analysis as a technique that allows researchers to examine and understand the complex relationships between editorial policy and lexicographic practice.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1093/ijl/ecn048

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