Plautdietsch – English. English – Plautdietsch Word Finder

for the Learner of Plautdietsch or Anyone Interested in Netherlandic-Mennonite Plautdietsch

Eldo Neufeld

The purpose of this alphabetically-arranged Plautdietsch-English, English-Plautdietsch word finder is to provide a handy reference tool for people who are looking for a word to use, for which they already know its equivalent in either one or the other of the two languages. The mother tongue of the compiler is Plautdietsch, and he has long been occupied with collecting lists of words in the dialect. He has especially looked for words not totally common in the daily speech of the speakers of the dialect. He has, nevertheless, relied heavily on the work of other plautdietsch writers, and especially on compilers of plautdietsch dictionaries. There is in existence a variety of such dictionaries, each with its own system of orthography. The system chosen for this work is the same as that used in the author's earlier publications, based closely on Reuben Epp’s 1996 publication “The Spelling of Low German and Plautdietsch.” Minor departures from that system will not be noticeable, although they are outlined in the Introduction.

A notable feature of this word finder is the addition of a special section of neologisms, words not formerly found in Plautdietsch vocabularies; for example, words in the fields (among others) of medicine, the law, the arts, sports, the military, modern technology, etc. Traditional, conservative opinion will probably object to the inclusion of this type of thinking, but if the dialect is to show its capability of dealing with contemporary life and adapting to it, serious consideration may have to be given to it. Plautdietsch is spoken by ca. 410,000 people (Canada 50,000; Germany 100,000; Kazakhstan 50,000; Latin America 140,000; Kazakhstan 50,000; USA 20,000).

ISBN 9783895864841. Languages of the World/Dictionaries 40. 535pp. 2005.

Kabba-English-French Dictionary

With English-Kabba and French-Kabba Finderlists

Rosmarie Moser and Jean-Pierre Dingatoloum

Kabba is a Central-Sudanic language of the West-Sara group; it is spoken by approximately 80,000 people in the Central African Republic. The Kabba are warriors, agriculturalists, hunters and fishermen. They migrated from East-Africa to the C.A.R. during civil upheavals and slave trade. The Kabba fought alongside the French in Europe and in Indo-China. The C.A.R., which was previously called Ubangi-Shari, gained its independence from France in 1960.

Rosmarie Moser worked five years (1994-1999) as linguist among the Kabba. She is the author of ‘Kabba: A Nilo-Saharan Language of the Central African Republic’, which was published by LINCOM in 2004. Jean-Pierre Dingatoloum, a Kabba and French-English teacher, was her close collaborator. Together they compiled the Kabba words and expressions and translated them into French and English.

Kabba est une langue Soudan-Centrale du group Sara-Ouest; elle est parlée par environ 80,000 personnes dans la République Centrafrique. Les Kabbas sont des guerriers, qui font l’agriculture, la chasse et la pêche. Ils sont venus en R.C.A de l’Afrique-Est pendant des guerres civiles et esclavage. Les Kabbas ont lutté à côté des Français en Europe et en Indo-Chine. La R.C.A., qui s’appelait auparavant Ubangi-Shari, a gagné son indépendance de la France en 1960.

Rosmarie Moser a travaillé cinq ans (1994-1999) comme linguiste parmi les Kabbas. Elle est l’auteur de ‘Kabba: A Nilo-Saharan Language of the Central African Republic’, qui a été publié par LINCOM en 2004. Jean-Pierre Dingatoloum, un Kabba et professeur de français-anglais, était son proche collaborateur. Ensemble ils ont recueillit les mots et les expressions kabbas et les ont traduits en français et en anglais.

ISBN 9783895865565 (Hardcover). Languages of the World/Dictionaries 41. 534pp. 2007.

Acholi English – English Acholi Dictionary

Mairi John Blackings
University of Strathclyde

Acholi is a Nilo-Saharan language of the Nilotic stock belonging to the southern cluster of Lwo languages found in Uganda, Kenya and the Sudan. In Uganda, the Acholi (800000 speakers) occupy the northernmost districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Amuru and Pader while in the Sudan, the Acholi (50000 speakers), share the southernmost county of Magwi with the Ma’di. The Acholi language has varying degrees of mutual intelligibility with a number of languages spoken across four countries; Uganda (Lango, Kumam, Alur, Jo pa Dhola), in the Sudan (Jur, Pari, Anyua and Chollo), and in Kenya and Tanzania (Lwo). This dictionary differs from similar earlier projects in a number of important respects. First, it exploits the full range of the ten vowels that the language has, rather than restricting itself to the five commonly used vowels. Secondly, it acknowledges the importance of tone and utilizes it to aid the process of word identification, discrimination and distinction. Thirdly, the dictionary provides etymological information on the sources of borrowed words to excavate the sociopolitical contacts of the Acholi people. Fourthly, words from the various dialects of Acholi spoken in both Uganda and the Sudan find equal prominence, reflecting the author’s own background and the strength and depth of the informants. Fifthly, it is the product of a linguist who has a near native level command of the language, having spent most of his formative years among the Acholi of Uganda and more recently living among the Acholi of the Sudan. Lastly, this dictionary gives both Acholi - English and English - Acholi versions of lexical items.

An equally important feature of this dictionary is its attempt at establishing a clear and concise way of pronouncing and writing Acholi words which should be invaluable to both the native speaker and the foreign learner of the language. While seeking to establish a standardardised way of spelling Acholi words, ironically this dictionary does not advocate the marking of tones, nor the distinction of vowel quality in writing Acholi, except in specialized projects like dictionaries, as meaning of Acholi words can often be easily deciphered from the context. Dr Mairi Blackings was educated at Gulu High School, Uganda, the University of Juba, Sudan, the University of Leeds, and the University of Strathclyde, UK, where he is currently a Post Doctoral Fellow. He is the author of Ma’di - English Dictionary (2000) and the co-author of A Grammar of Ma’di (2003).

ISBN 9783929075694. Languages of the World/Dictionaries 43. 206pp. 2009.

DICTIONNAIRE BOO -FRANÇAIS-ANGLAIS

avec INDEX FRANÇAIS-BOO
Ross McCallum Jones

Le dictionnaire boo-français-anglais a été compilé par l'auteur pendant une quarantaine d’années. La moitié de ce temps il a vécu parmi les Boo/Boussa de la République du Bénin et du Nigéria. La langue boo est connue historiquement comme boko, mais elle est connue maintenant au Bénin officiellement comme boo. Elle forme un petit groupe avec les langues bokobarou et boussa qui appartiennent au segment oriental des langues mandées. La grammaire de ce groupe de langue a été publiée par Lincom Europa en 1998 et un dictionnaire boko-anglais de 7000 mots a été publié par Lincom en 2004.

Cette édition contient 10.000 mots et est écrite pour les lecteurs francophones et anglophones. Les entrées principales et secondaires sont écrites en orthographe boo et sont suivies des représentations phonétiques, y compris des tonalités et des variantes, la partie du discours et des mots explicatifs en français et anglais. Les phrases dans le vernaculaire illustrent l'utilisation des mots, particulièrement verbes, suivis d'une traduction en français et anglais. Des synonymes sont donnés le cas échéant et 1232 commentaires étymologiques montrent l'emprunt historique significatif au dendi et plus récemment au français et à l’anglais. Ces commentaires incluent également la forme boussa et bokobarou le cas échéant, montrant l'affaiblissement et l'élision substantiel et les changements dans les systèmes de tonalité. Ce dictionnaire a été également embelli par l'addition de 665 noms scientifiques de faune et de flore et beaucoup d’autres informations qui présentent un intérêt pour les chercheurs universitaires. L’autre caractéristique intéressante de ce dictionnaire est le nombre de verbes transitifs (1000) et intransitifs (2273), la grande majorité étant des verbes composés.

The Boko-French-English dictionary was compiled by the author over a period of 40 years. His PhD thesis, the Boko-Busa language cluster, was published by Lincom Europa in 1998 and three dictionaries of Boko, Bokobaru and Busa in 2004. The 7000 word Boko-English dictionary has been enlarged to 10,000 words with 665 scientific names added together with 1240 etymological notes and many encyclopaedic notes that are of interest to linguistic scholars. Another interesting feature of this dictionary is the number of transitive (1000) and intransitive (2273) verbs, the vast majority being incorporations and compounds.

The headwords and subwords written in Boko orthography are followed by phonetic representations including all tones, a part of speech label and glosses in English and French. Sentences in Boko illustrate the use of many words, followed by translation into both French and English. Synonyms and variants are given as appropriate with etymological notes showing significant historical borrowing from Dendi. Comparison with related Bokobaru and Busa words illustrate consonant weakening and elision. Boko, spoken in Benin and Nigeria, belongs to the eastern division of the Mande language family.

ISBN 9783895864360. Languages of the World/Dictionaries 44. 605 pp. 2010.

English-Talyshi Dictionary. A-Z

(250 000 words and word combinations)

Farmoni Fakhraddin Aboszoda

Language and literature agency of the National Academy of Talysh

This dictionary is the continuation of the author’s effort of compiling full-fledged Talyshi dictionaries, which is reflected in previous publications of Russian-Talyshi Dictionary (in 2 volumes; 82 000 words and word combinations. Baku: MBM. 2006-2008), Talyshi-Turkic Dictionary (M.:2010; 50 000 words and word combinations), Talyshi-Turkic Dictionary (Baku, 2011. 107 670 words and word combinations) and Russian-Talyshi Dictionary (M.: 2011; 6000 words and word combiantions). The present dictionary is mainly based on V.K. Muller’s English-Russian Dictionary (M.: 2009) and consists of 250 000 words and phrases. At the same time, other English language sources were used during the work.

It is mainly a translation dictionary. In some cases definitions of scientific and other terms are given. The dictionary has as its purpose to introduce main global centers of Iranian studies to the Talyshi language.

The process of collecting Talyshi words is not finished yet, thus the author pursues the goal of continuing his research in this direction, taking into account forthcoming suggestions and critical notes from scientists and common readers.

ISBN 9783862882243 (Hardbound). Languages of the World /Dictionaries 45. 555p. 2011.

Russian-Talyshi dictionary. A-Z (60000 words and word combinations)

Farmoni Fakhraddin Aboszoda
Language and literature agency of the National Academy of Talysh

The Talyshi language (Tolyshi zyvon; Tolyshi) is one of the languages belonging to the North-Western group of the Iranian languages, and is spread in the region of the same name on the South-Western shore of the Caspian Sea, by both sides of the Iranian-Azerbaijani border. The number of the Talysh population in both countries constitutes 2-2,5 million people according to the unofficial figures.

The Talyshi language is customary subdivided into three major dialects, which have significant distinctions between each other: Northern (which is mostly spoken in the Azerbaijani Talysh), Central and Southern (both used in the Iranian Talysh). This dictionary is based on the vocabulary of the Northern dialect. The Talyshi language is strongly influenced by the Azeri-Turkic (in the north of Talysh and in central mountain regions), as well as Farsi and Gilaki (in the southern part). The absence of education and broadcasting in the Talyshi language has a negative impact on the level of language proficiency. The Talyshi language is primarily the language of basic social interactions, and it is gradually losing its dominant role pressured by the official languages.

The Talyshi language is characterized by the use of both nominative and ergative constructions. Among the peculiarities of consonantism in the Talyshi language one can point out the transition of unvoiced obstruent sounds, following the hollow sounds, into voiced sounds, which creates a double pronunciation, or in some cases displaces the hollow sound.

The Talyshi language preserves some phonetic features characteristic of the Median language.

Moreover, the Talyshi language, together with the so-called Tati dialects, is the extant dialect of the Azari language – the language of the ancient Aturpatakan.

Русско-талышский словарь. А-Я (60 000 слов и словосочетаний)
Фармони Фахраддин Абосзода

Талышский язык (толыши зывон; толыши) является одним из языков северо-западной группы иранских языков и распространен в одноименной области на юго-западном берегу Каспийского моря, по обе стороны ирано-азербайджанской границы. Число талышей в обеих странах по неофициальным данным оценивается в 2-2,5 миллиона человек.

В талышском языке принято выделять три главных диалекта, между которыми существуют сильные различия: северный (на котором говорят преимущественно в Азербайджанском Талыше), центральный и южный (используемые в Иранском Талыше).

Данный словарь составлен на базе лексики северного диалекта. Сильное влияние на талышский язык оказывают азери-тюрки (на севере Талыша и в центральных горных районах), а также фарси и гилаки (на юге области). Отсутствие образования и телевещания на талышском языке отрицательно сказывается на уровне владения языком.

Талышский язык, в первую очередь, остается языком бытового общения, где также под давлением государственных языков постепенно теряет доминирующую роль.

Талышский язык характеризуется использованием как номинативных, так и эргативных конструкций. Среди особенностей системы консонантизма талышского языка можно отметить переход глухих смычных, стоящих после глухих, в звонкие, что в результате либо создает двойное произношение, либо в некоторых случаях совсем вытесняет глухой звук.

Талышский язык сохраняет особенности фонетики, которые были свойственны еще мидийскому языку. Кроме того, вместе с так называемыми диалектами Тати, талышский язык является сохранившимся до наших дней диалектом языка азари – языка древней Атропатены.

ISBN 9783862882984 (Hardbound). Languages of the World /Dictionaries 46. 604p. 2012.

Dictionary of the Yugh Language

Heinrich Werner

Edited by
Edward J. Vajda
Western Washington University

The Yugh language, which died out in the 1970s, was closely related to Ket, the last surviving language of the Yeniseian family. Yugh was formerly spoken in the villages of Yartsevo and Vorogovo on the Yenisei River. The author of the dictionary was the last linguist to document the Yugh language, working with the last eight or ten speakers during 1961-1971. Based on this fieldwork, he compiled a full description of their language, as well as an extensive vocabulary.

The Yugh lexicon reflects a typical culture of hunter-gather-fishers living in a Siberian taiga and riverine environment. Many words also echo ancient aspects of spiritual culture. Because Yugh phonology and morphology preserve a number of archaic features no longer attested in Modern Ket, comparative data from Yugh is extremely helpful in helping reconstruct Proto-Yeniseian linguistic systems. The data presented here provide a solid basis for future scholarly work on the Yeniseian languages.

ISBN 9783862883639. Languages of the World/Dictionaries 47. 472pp. 2012.

Latyaygi – English – Español:  A trilingual dictionary of Lowland Chontal of Oaxaca

Loretta O’Connor
Lowland Chontal digital archive

Lowland Chontal is an endangered language of southeastern Mexico. It is one of two surviving sisters of Oaxaca Chontal, an unclassified language family with proposed links to the California linguistic area. The language is spoken fluently by fewer than 100 elders along the coastal plain of the Mexican state of Oaxaca. Many more people speak Lowland Chontal with varying degrees of proficiency and as a second language.

This trilingual dictionary is based primarily on the author’s years of fieldwork in San Pedro Huamelula and surrounding areas. The target audience includes Chontal learners and educators as well as academic linguistics. Introductory prefaces in English and Spanish orient the user to basic sounds and grammatical patterns in the language, with links to online materials, and glossaries from English and Spanish are provided. Dictionary entries include cross-references between related words and copious example sentences from field recordings. An interactive version of the dictionary on CD (included with the print volume) permits sorting and access through multiple fields, automatic jumping between searchable terms in entries and example sentences, and the ability to print vocabulary alphabetically or by semantic domain.

The author has various publications on this language and is curator of the Lowland Chontal digital archive in the DoBeS corpus.

ISBN 9783862884438 (Hardbound). Languages of the World/Dictionaries 48. 287pp. + CD. 2013.