by Mike Overly
Introduction
Simply stated, a dictionary is a book of words listed alphabetically with definitions, phonetic pronunciations, and other information. In broad terms, the purpose of a general dictionary is to present information about a wide array of words used by ordinary people in everyday situations.
There are other types of dictionaries, for example, bilingual translation dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms and antonyms, and rhyming dictionaries. These types of dictionaries serve special purposes.
Although the first recorded dictionaries date back to Sumerian times, the systematic study of dictionaries as objects of scientific interest themselves is a complex 20th century undertaking called lexicography.
History
Some of the oldest known dictionaries, circa 2300 BCE, were Akkadian empire cuneiform tablets with bilingual Sumerian–Akkadian wordlists, discovered in Ebla (Syria).
Also from the 3rd century BCE is the oldest extant Chinese dictionary Erya. When translated, Erya means Approaching Correctness.
Apollonius the Sophist, 1st century CE, was a Roman grammarian who wrote the oldest surviving Homeric lexicon.
Philitas of Cos, also from the 1st century CE, wrote a pioneering dictionary Disorderly Words which described the meanings of rare literary words, including those used by Homer.
The first Sanskrit dictionary, the Amarakośa, was written by Amara Sinha 4th century CE. Written in verse, it listed approximately 10,000 words.
The earliest Japanese dictionaries were not for the Japanese language, but rather dictionaries of Chinese characters written in Chinese and annotated in Japanese. The first Japanese dictionaries are no longer extant and are only known by their titles, for example, the 7th century CE Niina glossary of Chinese characters. The oldest existing Japanese dictionary is the 9th century CE Tenrei Banshō Meigi.
Arabic dictionaries were compiled between the 8th and 14th centuries CE. The Lisan al-Arab, 13th century CE, is the best-known large-scale dictionary of Arabic organized in alphabetical order. The Qamus al-Muhit, 14th century CE, is a smaller Arabic dictionary which eliminates the supporting examples used in the Lisan.
The earliest modern European dictionaries were bilingual dictionaries. The earliest in the English language were of French, Italian or Latin words along with definitions in English. An early non-alphabetical list of 8000 English words was the Elementarie created by Richard Mulcaster in 1592.
The first purely English alphabetical dictionary was A Table Alphabeticall, written by English schoolteacher Robert Cawdrey in 1604. The only surviving copy is found at the Bodleian Library in Oxford, England.
It was not until 1755, when Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language was published that a truly noteworthy and reliable English Dictionary was deemed to have been produced. The fact that many people today still mistakenly believe Johnson to have written the first English Dictionary is a testimony to this legacy. By this time, dictionaries had evolved to contain textual references for most words, and were arranged alphabetically, rather than by topic, which was a previously popular form of arrangement, for example, all animals would be grouped together. Johnson may be seen as being the first to bring all these elements together, creating the first modern dictionary.
Johnson's Dictionary remained the English-language standard for over 150 years, until the Oxford University Press began writing and releasing the Oxford English Dictionary in 1884. It took nearly 50 years to finally complete the huge work. The complete twelve volume OED was finally released in 1928. It remains the most comprehensive and trusted English language dictionary to this day, with revisions and updates added by a dedicated team every three months.
In 1806, American Noah Webster published his first dictionary, A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language. In 1807 Webster began compiling an expanded and fully comprehensive dictionary, An American Dictionary of the English Language. This dictionary took him twenty-seven years to complete. To evaluate the etymology of words, Webster learned twenty-six languages, including Anglo-Saxon English, German, Greek, Latin, Italian, Spanish, French, Hebrew, Arabic, and Sanskrit. Webster hoped to standardize American speech since Americans in different parts of the country used different languages. They also spelled, pronounced, and used English words differently.
Webster completed his dictionary during his year abroad in 1825 in Paris, France, and at the University of Cambridge, England. His book contained 70,000 words, of which 12,000 had never appeared in a published dictionary. As a spelling reformer, Webster believed that English spelling rules were unnecessarily complex, so his dictionary introduced American English spellings, replacing colour with color, substituting wagon for waggon, and printing center instead of centre. He also added American words, like skunk and squash, that did not appear in British dictionaries. In 1828, at the age of seventy, Webster published his dictionary. It sold 2500 copies. In 1840, a two volume second edition was published.
In the 21st century CE, it's safe to say that many go to the internet for their dictionary needs. Here are a few links to some of the more popular websites: dictionary.com, merriam-webster.com, oxforddictionaries.com and dictionary.cambridge.org.
Glossaries
A glossary is an alphabetical listing of defined words from a specialized field, such as music or medicine. In other words, a glossary is a simple word dictionary which provides definitions of concepts and terms found in a specific book which focuses on a specialized subject. From these beginning definitions, other concepts, thoughts, and ideas can then be presented, defined and understood. Glossaries are particularly helpful for those who are first learning a given subject, for example, learning to play music on the guitar.
The following glossary is borrowed from the Tone Note® Music Method for Guitar Volume 1. I hope that these words and definitions attract you to the wonderful world of music and guitar.
Until next time, play and have fun... I'll be listening.
Anchor Finger - left-hand finger 2, used to play the key letter of tone 1 or any harmony numeral
Alternate - switch back and forth, one after another
Bar Line - groups the beats into bars based upon the meter
Beat - a steady counted pulse
Beats Per Minute (bpm) - rate of speed of the steady beats, tempo
Benefit - the advantage you have because of something you know or can do
Bonus - a reward for achievement, extra
Bridge - opposite the Nut, keeps the strings from touching the fretboard
Circle six-two - guitar string 6 and left hand finger 2, form
Clap-Shake - counting method used in the Tone Note® Guitar Rhythm Books
Combination - to join or add together
Count - say the beat number out loud
Double bar lines - show where the symbols of the last bar end
Duration - the amount of time a sound or silence lasts, rhythm
Efficient - less energy, less strums
Form - connects a left-hand finger to a string of the guitar
Frets - the metal strips on the guitar fretboard, and the Nut, fret zero
Fret Zero - playing the sound at the nut with a left-hand finger
Frequency - the number of back and forth motions, vibrations, pitch
Ghost Strum - a right-hand strum down or up which makes no sound
Goal - something which will be achieved in the future
Half-Step - an interval, the distance of one fret higher or lower on the guitar
Harmony - begins with one sound as a letter or numeral
Harmony Letter - the symbol for the first sound of harmony
Harmony Mark - rhythm symbol of harmony
Horizontal - east and west, sideways
Hover - to float above or over
Inside the Box - guitar player slang for inside the position square
Interval - the distance between two sounds or symbols
Key - the letter of tone 1
Key Letter - the letter name of the key
Layer - one in front of another
Left-Hand Fingers - used to press the strings to the fretboard
Letter - first music symbol of pitch, used to identify key and harmony
Location - the place where something is, position
Major Scale - the in-order tone numbers: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Marks - rhythm symbol of harmony letters and numerals
Meter Slash - symbol used to make a beat visible, used to show a beat’s location
Metronome - clock-like machine used to set the beats per minute (bpm) tempo
Melody - scale tones played one at a time out of order and in any rhythm
Music - the Art of sound and silence played by a musician
Musician - the person who thinks music symbols and signs to create music
Note - rhythm symbol of a tone number, melody
Number - the symbol for the meter, or the pitch symbol for the sound of tone
Numeral - third symbol of pitch used to play harmony in all keys
Nut - opposite the Bridge, keeps the strings from touching the fretboard, fret zero
Octave - the first 7 letters, tone numbers and numerals
Pattern - a group of things: finger pattern, tone pattern, rhythm pattern
Pick - plectrum, held by the right hand and used to strum the strings
Pinch - to hold by squeezing with the right hand thumb and i finger
Pitch - letter, tone number and harmony numeral, vibration, frequency
Play - technique, skill and ability
Position Square - a four-fret square imagined on the six-strings of the fretboard, location
Position Markers - inlays placed in the fretboard and on top of the neck which helps you locate a fret more quickly
Practice - repetition which makes you faster
Progress - to move forward, advance
Pulse - a steady uncounted beat, tempo
Repeat Sign - a music sign meaning to do again
Rest - silence, on guitar: to stop a string from vibrating with the right hand
Revolution - a new way of doing something traditional
Rhythm - time, symbolized by meter, value, notes, marks and tempo
Right-Hand - used to strum: stroke or ghost, or, to rest (silence)
Scale - a set of in order sounds
Scale Degree - the traditional name for tone number
Shift - to move the left-hand to a different letter and fret position
Sign - action, tells you to do or not to do something
Skill - technique, to play better and faster over time with practice
Stack - one above the other, time signature
Steady - even like a clock, pulse, beat, tempo
String 6 - the thickest string on the guitar
Stroke - a right-hand strum down or up which makes a sound
Strum - any down or up motion of the right-hand, stroke or ghost
Sustain - to let the sound keep on ringing, to hold
Symbol - that which represents something else
Target - to aim at a letter, number or numeral
Technique - skill, to play better and faster over time with practice
Tempo - rate of speed of the steady beat, beats per minute (bpm)
Theory - to think, music theory and guitar theory
Tie - a curved line that adds beats together, sustain
Time Signature - meter number stacked on top of the value number
Tone Number - second symbol of pitch used to play melody in all keys, scale degree
Traditional - the way it has been in the past
Vertical - north and south, up and down
Vibrations - repeated motions with frequency, pitch
Whole Step - an interval, the distance of two frets higher or lower on the guitar
Globally-renowned guitar and bass instructor, Mike Overly easily combines the worlds of deeply-rooted academic study with a well-textured performance resume. His pathbreaking 12 Tone Music Publishing products, including the newly released "Tone Note® Music Method for Guitar," provide valuable illuminating insights while simplifying the learning process.
Join Mike at www.12tonemusic.com to explore and expand your knowledge of these two iconic instruments through a variety of reviews and interviews, tips and tricks and free lessons of remarkable originality, all presented in a family-friendly forum. Plus, as an added bonus, you get to follow Mr. Pick as he introduces you to fun fretboard games, jokes, riddles, quotes and more. Be sure to read the 12 Tone Music Blog where Mike offers a behind-the-scenes look at the development of his unique approach to solving the problems of modern musical notation and traditional guitar and bass methods.
Mike Overly's unmatched perspective on fretboard education has something for everyone ~ from the amateur hobbyist to the serious professional player ~ as well as any music enthusiast who wants to come along for the ride.
