Concepts for monofunctional accounting dictionaries
Terminology, (2012)Abstract
Most scholars — and in this regard there is no big difference between specialised lexicographers or terminographers — do not subscribe to the thesis elaborated in this paper, namely that a dictionary is a tool, and that a good tool is a tool conceived for a specific function that satisfies the needs of a particular user group in a specific user situation. In the light of this thesis, it is not important to discuss whether it is better for a dictionary to have, for example, an alphabetic or a systematic macrostructure. The real question is: How can one tailor a tool to the specific information needs of a given user group in such a way that these users can gain quick access to the data they need? Like with any other tool, the best solution is a monofunctional tool. In the case of lexicography, that would be a monofunctional dictionary. Such a dictionary differs from most general and specialised language dictionaries, which are normally constructed as polyfunctional tools which attempt to help solve a range of cognitive and communicative problems. Taking one database as the point of departure, I will discuss the concept of this database and of 23 different Danish, English and Spanish accounting dictionaries.