A4 Refereed article in a conference publication
Eettiset kysymykset sanakirjatyössä
Authors: Lehtosalo Kaisa, Tyysteri Laura
Editors: Niina Nissilä, Nestori Siponkoski
Publishing place: Vaasa
Publication year: 2011
Journal: Vakki Symposium
Book title : Kieli ja etiikka
Series title: Vaasan yliopiston käännösteorian, ammattikielten ja monikielisyyden tutkijaryhmän julkaisuja
Number in series: 38
Issue: 38
First page : 212
Last page: 223
ISBN: 978-952-476-377-6
ISSN: 1797-6146
Web address : http://www.vakki.net/publications/2011/VAKKI2011_Lehtosalo&Tyysteri.pdf
Abstract
This article discusses the ethics of lexicography. The description of a language always involves decisions as to whose views of the language are worth describing. This leaves potential power to the researcher composing the description. The typical set-up for a dictionary does not provide many opportunities for the lexicographer to report on the ideology behind the made choices, and the users tend to think dictionaries to be more normative than the lexicographers have intended. This is why the choices made in the lexicographical work have even greater importance than the ones made in other kinds of language descriptions. The biggest ethical question in lexicography is how to approximate the essential features of the variation. In this article, we point out that almost all choices made within the search of a norm also concern ethics: this is true of questions such as the choice of register to be described and words to be added to the final dictionary as well as the formulation of the glosses given to the chosen words. While making these choices the lexicographers have to rely on their own instincts, and it is inevitable that the values and attitudes of the lexicographer have an impact. Lexicography has not been discussed from the viewpoint of ethics in Finland, and in this article we want to raise questions and inspire discussion more than give pat answers.
This article discusses the ethics of lexicography. The description of a language always involves decisions as to whose views of the language are worth describing. This leaves potential power to the researcher composing the description. The typical set-up for a dictionary does not provide many opportunities for the lexicographer to report on the ideology behind the made choices, and the users tend to think dictionaries to be more normative than the lexicographers have intended. This is why the choices made in the lexicographical work have even greater importance than the ones made in other kinds of language descriptions. The biggest ethical question in lexicography is how to approximate the essential features of the variation. In this article, we point out that almost all choices made within the search of a norm also concern ethics: this is true of questions such as the choice of register to be described and words to be added to the final dictionary as well as the formulation of the glosses given to the chosen words. While making these choices the lexicographers have to rely on their own instincts, and it is inevitable that the values and attitudes of the lexicographer have an impact. Lexicography has not been discussed from the viewpoint of ethics in Finland, and in this article we want to raise questions and inspire discussion more than give pat answers.
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