Lexicography

Johnson defined a lexicographer as “a writer of dictionaries, a harmless drudge
that busies himself in tracing the original and detailing the signification of
words".
But he was obviously far more than a harmless drudge, and his dictionary was
by far the most comprehensive and read able that had appeared. The reputation
of the Dictionary of the English language was so great that it dominated the field
until the turn of the 18 th century and established a mighty line of thorough and
scholarly English dictionaries.
Johnson was an eccentric man, and he saw no reason why he should keep his
eccentricities and strong opinions out of his dictionary. Thus, many of his
definitions are as much revelations of the author’s personality as attempts to
record the English language:
Dedication. A servile address to a patron.
Goat. A ruminant animal that seems a middle species between dear and sheep.
Lunch. As much food as one’s hand can hold.
Oats. A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, britin Scotland
supports the people.
Pensioner. A slave of state hired by a stipend to obey his master. In England it is
generally understood to mean pay given to a state hireling for treason to his
country.
Despite the humorous pedantry of the above the relations, Johnson adopted an
enlightened and humble view about the relationship between language and
lexicographers. “I am not yet so lost in lexicography, as and forget that words
are the daughters of earth and that things are the sons of heaven”, he wrote, and
“Dictionaries are like watches: the worst is better than none, and the best cannot
be expected and go quite true”.
Johnson’s great work raised English lexicography to a higher level. In his hands
it became a department of literature. Johnson’s contribution to lexicographic
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