Lexicology. Lexicography

COURSE PAPER ON THE ASPECTS OF LEXICOGRAPHY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction: The history, types and branches of lexicography.......................3 2. Historical development of British Lexicography................................................5 3. Historical development of American Lexicography...........................................8 4. Types of dictionaries............................................................................................10 5. Conclusions...........................................................................................................14 6. References.............................................................................................................16

1. Introduction: The history, types and branches of lexicography
Lexicography constitutes the applied study of the meaning, evolution, and function of the vocabulary units of a language for the purpose of compilation in book form; in other words, lexicography is the theory and practice of compiling dictionaries.
The etymology of lexicography is derived from the Greek origin lexicos, “of or for words” and grapho, “to scratch, to inscribe, to write”.
The existence of lexicography can be traced back to the 5th century CE when Hesychius, a grammarian from Alexandria developed a lexicon of obscure and ancient Greek words. In China, Sima Guang, a historian was responsible for compiling a dictionary in the 11th century. General lexicography was in use in the 16th century making great strides in the study of the etymology and other modern aspect of the dictionary in the 17 and 18th centuries. In 1911, the concise Oxford dictionary was developed by the lexicographer Henry Watson.

Lexicography is identified by the two branches of Practical Lexicography and Theoretical