A Blegburn Dickshonary

[podictionary]

A few weeks ago, while producing one of my podictionary episodes I came across in the Oxford English Dictionary a citation in an obscure dialectical dictionary from 100 years ago. It is called "A Blegburn Dickshonary." A kind listener gave me a copy and since the copyright has reverted to the public domain, I have offered it up for others to see at http://0042bfe.netsolhost.com/dickshonary/index.htm
So far a volunteer and I have proof read 4 of 25 pages of the "dickshonary" and I would welcome any other volunteers willing to review the OCRed text against the original in PDF format. As you will see if you look at it, spellcheck is no help here, the exercise is a bit of an eye-crossing effort. If you're game the way to contact me is posted in the "dickshonary."

[Phil White]

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obscure dialectical dictionary

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dialectical?

[podictionary]

Written in dialect, as were the poems of Robbie Burns in Scottish dialect this "dickshonary" is written in Lancashire dialect. An example:
BERRYIN' (funeral). Aw've heeard id said as fact'ry fooak only geds three good sprees in a lifetime an' them's ayther at a kessenin', aweddin',or a berryin' an' th' goodest spree is at a berryin'. Id seems a queer thing as id should be sooa, but then th' world's full o’ nowt else but queer things.

[Erik_Kowal]

Podictionary, I suspect Phil may be drawing attention to the distinction between 'dialectal' ('pertaining to dialects') and 'dialectical' ('pertaining to logical argumentation'). On the other hand, my Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary states that 'dialectical' can also be used in the same sense as 'dialectal', although the latter form is regarded as being more usual.

Now that we've sorted that out, I feel so much better.

[Phil White]

Good god! Erik, your suspicions are correct. Never occurred to me to look at a dictionary, though. I was utterly sure of my ground. The Shorter OED only gives dialectical in the meaning "pertaining to logical disputation", so perhaps it depends what side of the pond you are. I'd never use it to mean "pertaining to dialect".

[podictionary]

I didn't look it up before I spat it out so I'm glad that I have no reason to blush (not that reason anyway).

[Erik_Kowal]

I agree. Dictionaries are much overrated as romance literature.

[Bobinwales]

Too few characters, as opposed to telephone directories which have too many.