The Dictionary People
- Author Sarah Ogilvie
- Narrator Joan Walker, Sarah Ogilvie
- Publisher Random House
- Run Time 11 hours and 8 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Biography and non-fiction prose, Collected biographies, History, Language: history and general works, Lexicography, Semantics, discourse analysis, stylistics, Social and cultural history.
Titles Purchased
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- 6-10
- 11-15
- 16-20
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Price p/Title
- €9.95
- €8.95
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What to expect
Brought to you by Penguin.
What do three murderers, Karl Marx's daughter and a vegetarian vicar have in common?
They all helped create the Oxford English Dictionary.
The Oxford English Dictionary has long been associated with elite institutions and Victorian men; its longest-serving editor, James Murray, devoted 36 years to the project, as far as the letter T. But the Dictionary didn't just belong to the experts; it relied on contributions from members of the public. By the time it was finished in 1928 its 414,825 entries had been crowdsourced from a surprising and diverse group of people, from archaeologists and astronomers to murderers, naturists, novelists, pornographers, queer couples, suffragists, vicars and vegetarians.
Lexicographer Sarah Ogilvie dives deep into previously untapped archives to tell a people's history of the OED. She traces the lives of thousands of contributors who defined the English language, from the eccentric autodidacts to the family groups who made word-collection their passion. With generosity and brio, Ogilvie reveals, for the first time, the full story of the making of one of the most famous books in the world - and celebrates to sparkling effect the extraordinary efforts of the Dictionary People.
©2023 Sarah Ogilvie (P)2023 Penguin Audio
Critics Review
-
Utterly fascinating, entertaining, astonishing and as clever as a box of monkeys… I am bowled over by Sarah Ogilvie’s book and every home should have a copy. I completely love it
Joanna Lumley -
Who knew such mysteries lay behind the Oxford English Dictionary? This is a fascinating, unique and original book which uncovers the people behind the words. A jaw-dropping cross-section of society are revealed for the first time in all their complexity
Janina Ramirez, author of Femina -
Exquisitely written … A lively, funny book full of eccentrics
Jamaica Kincaid -
Enthralling and exuberant, Sarah Ogilvie tells the surprising story of the making of the OED. Philologists, fantasists, crackpots, criminals, career spinsters, suffragists, and Australians: here is a wonder-book for word-lovers
Jeanette Winterson -
I love words and I cherish my OED … having the background of it explained was fascinating
Val McDermid
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