AFRILEX
Newsletter 6 – January 2002
Compiler: M. Alberts
Report on AFRILEX
activities during 2001
On
the 28th and 29th of May 2001, AFRILEX hosted a Two-Day Seminar on Terminology
in Pretoria. The seminar was presented by Proff. Sven Tarp and Rufus Gouws, and
was well-attended by a delegation from the National Language Service of the
Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST) and members of the
various National Lexicography Units (NLUs). Even though the seminar was
primarily theory-driven, the practical implications for the South African
lexicographical landscape were given due attention and proved very enlightening
indeed.
!
Annual
International Conference
The
6th International Conference of AFRILEX was held in Pietersburg from 2 to 4
July 2001. Some 30 papers were presented and the conference, although taking
place in the deep hinterland of South Africa, was attended by over 70 people.
Attendees came from various countries in Africa and Europe, with especially
strong Gabonese and Zimbabwean delegations. Keynotes were presented by
Gilles-Maurice de Schryver (Lexicographers’ Dreams in the
Electronic-Dictionary Age) and Prof. Danie Prinsloo (Corpus-Based
African-Language Lexicography). The program consisted further of special
sessions and parallel sessions during which the conference theme (Computational
Lexicography and the Development of Corpora) and other issues of
lexicographical importance were evenly balanced. The discussions, both those
following the presentations and those during the unofficial program, were
lively, and there was a general consensus that African-language lexicography
has taken its rightful place in the digital era.
!
Annual General Meeting
The 6th Annual General Meeting
of AFRILEX was held in Pietersburg during the Conference and took place on 3
July 2001. The meeting was attended by some 70 members.
The newly elected
Executive Board consists of DJ Prinsloo (Chairperson), RH Gouws
(Vice-Chairperson), KJ Mashamaite (Secretary), MJ Mojalefa (Treasurer), M
Alberts (Registrar) and G-M de Schryver (Organiser). The other elected Board
members are ML Mphahlele, MH Mpungose and FM Shoba.
It
was decided at the AGM that the 7th International Conference of AFRILEX will be
held in Grahamstown, South Africa, from 8 to 10 July 2002 (immediately
following the world-renowned Grahamstown Arts Festival). The local organiser is
Ms Kathy Kavanagh (k.kavanagh@ru.ac.za)
and the conference theme is ‘Culture and Dictionaries’. Prof. H
Bergenholtz, who has done extensive research in Madagascar and edited a
Malagasy-German dictionary in 1991, has been invited to read a keynote. The
other keynote will be read by Prof. AC Nkabinde.
Looking
further ahead, the 2003 conference is planned to take place in Windhoek,
Namibia, and the 2004 Conference in Libreville, Gabon.
Contributed
by
Gilles-Maurice
de Schryver, AFRILEX Organiser
Ghent
University, Belgium
gillesmaurice.deschryver@rug.ac.be
&
&
Our faults irritate us most when we see
them in others.
— Pennsylvania Dutch Proverb
Nothing so needs reforming as other
people’s habits.
— Mark Twain
&
&
A Short summary of an
ongoing “Laurence Urdang Award (LUA)” project
The compilation of an electronic Sepedi reference
package within the framework of Fuzzy SF
The
2000 Laurence Urdang Award to the value of 1,000 GBP was awarded to Mr.
Gilles-Maurice de Schryver for the compilation of an electronic Sepedi
reference package within the framework of Fuzzy SF. Additional funding was
received from the Department of African Languages of the University of
Pretoria. This is a brief report of the first six months of the project.
In
order to address the absence of a solid metalexicographic framework enabling
the compilation of African-language dictionaries, the theoretical concept of
Simultaneous Feedback was introduced in 1997. Simultaneous Feedback (SF) can be
understood as entailing a method in terms of which the release of several
small-scale parallel dictionaries triggers off feedback that is instantly
channelled back into the compilation process of a main dictionary. The aim of
this project is to take the gist of SF one step further. Instead of merely
describing the theoretical parameters for the production of a (paper)
dictionary for a particular target user group, a metalexicographic
framework for an electronic package is being designed with which any user
can produce his or her own tailored reference work. This package
consists of a relational database plus corpus in which the traditional
macrostructure is exploded. Artificial Intelligence (AI) components enable the
implicit retrieval of personalised user feedback with which the package customises
the user's dictionary. All the data in both the database and the corpus are
graded using Fuzzy Sets, so that the package only answers queries on the user's
level. The working title for this new theoretical framework is Fuzzy SF.
During
the first three months of the project, the main theoretical aspects of Fuzzy SF
were fleshed out, and all practicalities were set in place for the actual
implementation of this innovative dictionary concept to Sepedi. A computer
suite at the University of Pretoria was equipped with 6 linked Pentiums. A team
was assembled consisting of three lexicographers and two corpus builders, all
of them mother-tongue speakers contracted with the help of the Sepedi National Lexicography Unit (NLU) and the
Department of African Languages. Finally, some features of the Onoma Lexical
Workbench were adapted to the main requirements of the project.
In
the subsequent three months, a training period was initiated by the LUA
recipient (Gilles-Maurice de Schryver) in the writing of monolingual dictionary
definitions, and the building of an electronic corpus. Apart from a transfer of
the theoretical principles underlying the work, hands-on computational support
in the use of Onoma, OCR scanners, WordSmith Tools, etc. was also provided. Within
3 months, the SQL database contained over 1,000 lemma signs and the raw corpus
had grown to 5.8 million tokens.
The
first half-year results are as follows:
·
The Lexicography and Terminology
Development Subcommittee of the Pan South
African Language Board (PANSALB) was invited to visit the project at the
University of Pretoria (27 June 2001), with the aim that this project would
serve as an example for the other eight African-language NLUs.
·
A Special Session was organised during the
6th International Conference of AFRILEX (Pietersburg, South Africa, 2-4 July
2001) during which the lexicographers presented their work, both from a
theoretical and a practical angle.
·
Also during that Special Session, a
hardcopy of the database was distributed as the first parallel dictionary of
the Pukuntšutlhaloši ya Sesotho sa Leboa
(PyaSsaL) ‘Explanatory Sepedi Dictionary’. All delegates participated in an
experiment to retrieve feedback. (And this feedback is currently being analysed
and fed back into the project.)
·
The core of the theoretical concept of Fuzzy SF was presented at the 2001 Asian Association for
Lexicography (ASIALEX) Biennial Conference (Seoul, Korea, 8-10 August 2001).
·
The text of that presentation was published
in the ASIALEX 2001 PROCEEDINGS, Asian
Bilingualism and the Dictionary: 141–146. Seoul: Centre for Linguistic
Informatics Development, Yonsei University. It has also been selected by the
editors of Studies in Lexicography,
to be included in volume 11 of their semi-annual journal.
·
A Research Article was published in Lexikos 11 (2001: 1–37) in which the
various compilation aspects of PyaSsaL are examined and illustrated. One
onomasiological sub-field, namely the days of the week, is used as a case
study.
Presently,
the project entered its second phase, i.e. on the one hand the creation of a
morphological analyser (including word tokeniser and part-of-speech tagger), a
lemmatiser, a syntactic parser, and a system for markup, and on the other hand
the basic design of the package (interfaces between the user and the 'black
box' (= relational database plus corpus), the design of the AI and Fuzzy Set
elements, etc.). It is expected that the first results will be available on the
Internet rather soon.
The
Laurence Urdang Award has been acknowledged in written documents, and the
recipient expresses his sincere gratitude to the Sponsor, Laurence Urdang, and
the LUA Selection Panel.
Contributed by
Gilles-Maurice de Schryver, 2000 LUA recipient
Ghent
University, Belgium
gillesmaurice.deschryver@rug.ac.be
&
&
The man who removes a mountain begins by
carrying away small stones.
— Chinese proverb
Perseverance is not a long race; it is many
short races one after another.
— Walter Elliot
&
&
NEWS
FROM THE SEPEDI NLU
Ka
di 01 Mei 2001 Board ya Sesotho sa Leboa e thwetše Mtšna. Mogodi M.P. le Mna.
Mphahlele M.C. bjalo ka bangwalapukuntšu mola Mna. Lepota B. a thwetšwe bjalo
ka mongwalapukuntšu wa lebakanyana.
Bangwalapukuntšu
ba, ba ile ba tsenela tlhahlo ya mošomo yeo e bego e sepedišwa le go laolwa ke
Mna. Gilles-Maurice de Schryver, mme ka yona nako yeo le sešego sa mantšu se be
se le gare se godišwa. Tlhahlo e sepetše ka thelelo le lebelo ka ge ka morago
ga beke tše pedi go be go šetše go gatišwa pukuntšu ya mathomo yeo e nago le
mantšu a 442. Ka nako ya ge go swerwe 6th International Conference of the
African Association for Lexicography kua go la Pietersburg, pukuntšu ya
bobedi ya mantšu a 1048 e ile ya gatišwa le go fiwa batho.
Go
šomišwa lenaneo la Onoma go ngwala pukuntšu ye, mme le tloga le nolofatša mošomo le go o sepetša ka
lebelwana ka ge go fihla lebakeng le pukuntšu e swere mantšu a 5000. Go dira
gore mošomo o be boleta, o arolwa ka mafapha a go fapanafapana ao go ona Mtšna.
Mogodi a bago le a gagwe mola Mna. Mphahlele le yena a e ba le a gagwe. Go dira
ka tsela ye ba leka go thibela gore mafelelong ba se tle ba hwetša lentšu le
tee le filwe ditlhalošo tše pedi, ka ge ba le mafelong a go fapana.
Mošomo
wa go ngwala mantšu a maswa le go fa ditlhalošo o sa emišitšwe ka gonnyane ga
bjale, lebaka ke gore go swaraganwe le go swaya wo o šetšego o dirilwe go bona
gore o hlwekile ebile o a kgotsofatša. Maikemišetšo a magolo ka go dira se ke
gore, Yuniti e gopotše go ntšha kgatišo ya pukuntšu ya mantšu a 5000, mme e
išwe setšhabeng (bao e lego baboledi ba Sesotho sa Leboa) se e lekole se fe
dikakanyo tša sona.
Contributed by
Paulinah
Mogodi, Editor Sepedi NLU, Branch Office (Pretoria)
&
&
7th International
Afrilex conference, Grahamstown, 8-10 July 2002
All members are
once again cordially invited to attend the 7th International Conference of
AFRILEX.
The
Second
Circular, dated 24 January 2002, is being sent out to the members
concurrently with this Newsletter. We urge members to study that circular
carefully since it contains important and detailed information.
Mr. G-M de Schryver, who is centralising
the incoming abstracts, reports that abstracts are being submitted from all
corners of the world, including strong proposals from Asia, Europe, and of
course Africa. The topics too are wide-ranging, with numerous interesting
suggestions revolving around the main conference theme ‘Culture and
Dictionaries’.
&
&
Included in the
First Circular regarding the 7th International Conference, dated 10 August
2001, members were informed of their membership status with the Association.
Members who were paid-up for 2001 should have received a copy of the journal Lexikos
11 free of charge.
Please ensure that
you regularly pay your membership fees. A personalised statement reflecting
each member’s current membership status with the Association is included with
the Second Circular, dated 24 January 2002.
&
&
LIEFLIKE
SÊGOED OOR LAG
·
Onthou: ‘n Glimlag het nie vertaling nodig
nie.
·
Lag is die medisyne wat niks kos nie en
baie vermag.
·
Humor spuit ‘n dik stroom goeie, sappige
sous deur jou liggaam.
·
Lag meer vir jouself en jou foute en wees
minder ernstig.
·
Humor maak die swaar draggliker.
·
Saamlag skep geleenthied vir dieper deel.
·
Lag vir jou komiese gebreke en
onbeholpenheid.
·
Lag saam met ander; dit bou vriendskappe
oor grense heen.
&
&
Kernerman
Publishing and K Dictionaries recently announced the establishment of The
Kernerman Dictionary Fund. The fund will award grants with the aim of
promoting research in lexicography for the benefit of dictionary users
worldwide.
In the first 3-year period (2002-2004) the fund
will make available the sum of US$ 9,000. The administration of grants will be
carried out by the associations for lexicography in Europe, Asia and Africa
(EURALEX, ASIALEX and AFRILEX). Each association will appoint an Assessment
Committee consisting of its president and one or two officers, who will review
applications.
Three grants will be awarded annually by each
Committee. The maximum sum of each grant is $1,000, but a grant may be renewed
fully or partially on the submission of a satisfactory report at the end of
year one or year two. When not utilized, money may be held over for the
following year. The grants are open to candidates anywhere in the world, who
may apply to any of the three committees.
Applicants should submit a 500-word outline of
their proposal, which, if accepted, will be published in Kernerman Dictionary
News. Upon completion of the project, a 2,000-word summary will be published in
KDN. Publication of the full text is left to the discretion of the author, but
the Fund requests that it be sent a copy of any ensuing publications.
Grants will be awarded in five areas of
lexicography during the first 3-year period:
1 The design of dictionaries for language
learners at the elementary and intermediate levels, and the study of
dictionary-using behaviour at these levels
Lower-lever English learners (those in primary,
junior high- and high-schools) constitute the vast majority of foreign language
learners and dictionary users. But they are a neglected majority, since most
research in foreign-language-learning lexicography is focused on university and
college students. Research in this area at the tertiary level will not qualify
for a grant during the first 3-year period.
2
Specialized corpora for non-native learners of English
Despite recent progress in the design and use of
foreign learner corpora, most learner dictionaries continue to be based on
general language corpora, which in certain respects do not meet the interests
and needs of language learners. Basing learner dictionaries on corpora that
reflect more closely the vocabulary needs of learners at various levels would
enhance pedagogical lexicography, and make modern learner dictionaries more
user-friendly and relevant.
3
The function of lexicography in the process of vocabulary acquisition
Where vocabulary means new words and phrases, as
well as new meanings of familiar words and phrases, and acquisition means
storing in the reader’s long-term memory, the function of the learner’s
dictionary in vocabulary acquisition takes on an important dimension. Studies
are needed not simply of how the dictionary helps the learner understand new
meanings and uses, but also of how it facilitates their retention in the
long-term memory. How can dictionaries assist the learner to remember what has
been understood?
A growing number of language learners are already
bilingual. These include members of such groups as national and ethnic minorities,
people who speak the language of their rulers, refugees, emigrants, foreign
students, transient workers and their families, and numerous others who may be
on the move. When these people learn and use English as the global lingua
franca, or any other new language, they become trilingual. Though the theory
and design of trilingual dictionaries is still in its infancy, it may now be
more viable, with the development of electronic lexicography.
5
Lexicographic programs concerning language preservation and revival
The genuine fears of the extinction of smaller
languages in the face of globalization together with the dissemination of a few
favoured languages are stimulating efforts to preserve them, or even to revive
them in cases where the number of speakers has declined almost to the vanishing
point. Dictionaries, whether historical, monolingual, bilingual or descriptive,
can clearly help in the preservation and revival of endangered languages. The
construction of oral and written corpora is required for such languages, and
also critical research into available material.
* * *
These are general guidelines, and the Committees
may use their own discretion in selecting awardees for innovative research in
other areas. The Committees are independent, and their decisions are final.
At the end of the first 3-year period the
administration and allocation of the Fund will be reconsidered, the number and
structure of the Assessment Committees may be modified, the Committees may be
combined, and the topic areas and sums awarded may be revised.
Lionel Kernerman
Kernerman Publishing Ltd.
46 Hagolan St.
Tel Aviv 69361
Israel
Tel. + 972 3 649 2715
Fax + 972 3 649 3712
The AFRILEX Board will inform members in due time
as to the exact procedures; the text above should thus be considered as a first
announcement.
&
&
The intricacies of the English language
This
little treatise on the lovely English language we share, is only for the brave.
It was passed on by a linguist, unfortunately the original author is unknown.
Peruse at your leisure, English lovers.
Reasons
why the English language is so hard to learn:
* The bandage was wound around the wound.
* The farm was used to produce produce.
* The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
* We must polish the Polish furniture.
* He could lead if he would get the lead out.
* The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
* Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was
time to present the present.
* A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
* When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
* I did not object to the object.
* The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
* There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
* They were too close to the door to close it.
* The buck does funny things when the does are present.
* A seamstress and a sewer fell down into
a sewer line.
* To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
* The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
* After a number of injections my jaw got number.
* Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
* I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
* How can I intimate
this to my most intimate friend?
$
Let's
face it – English is a crazy language:
* There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor
pine in pineapple.
* English muffins weren't invented in England nor French fries in
France.
* Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are
meat.
$
We
take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find:
* quicksand can work slowly,
* boxing rings are square, and
* a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
* And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers
don't groce and hammers don't ham?
* If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth
beeth?
* One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese?
* One index, 2 indices?
* Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend.
* If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of
them, what do you call it?
* If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
* If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?
$
Sometimes
I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the
verbally insane:
* In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?
* Ship by truck and send cargo by ship?
* Have noses that run and feet that smell?
* How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise
man and a wise guy are opposites?
* You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your
house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it
out and in which an alarm goes off by going on.
* English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the
creativity of the human race (which, of course, isn't a race at all).
* That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the
lights are out, they are invisible.
&
&
ETHICS,
EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE & EARNINGS. ELEMENTS IN THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL WORLD OF
TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETING
CALL FOR PAPERS
New
Zealand Society of Translators & Interpreters
Auckland,
New Zealand
1-3
June 2002.
Ethics
is widely acknowledged as an essential element in any professional human
interaction. In the context of language difference, culture difference and
difference in power, the role of ethics become particularly pivotal. Our ethics
standards are the glue which not only holds our profession together but also
provides credibility to the public.
The
conference seeks to highlight the nature of work for professional translators
and interpreters today - in a context of today’s everchanging world. The sheer
range and diversity of this will guarantee a rewarding and interesting
conference.
Submissions
of papers are now being accepted. Please direct all submissions, queries and
other correspondence to the National Secretary via e-mail at liu@ihug.co.nz
The
organising Committee will publish the proceedings of the conference during or
immediately after the conference. Further details regarding the conference
programme, venue and possible accommodation can be obtained from the organisers
at the above-mentioned e-mail address.
&
&
— French proverb
A good conscience is a continual
Christmas.
— Benjamin Franklin
&
&
ONLINE
TERMINOLOGY DISCUSSION BULLETIN BOARD
There
is an online terminology discussion bulletin board available at the following
web site: http://www.lisa.org/sigs/phpBB/viewforum.php?forum=1&7
The
bulletin board is sponsored by the Localization Industry Standards Association.
It is intended to foster dialogue about managing terminology in the business
environment. Anyone can participate by submitting topics or responding to
existing topics.
Participation
in this bulletin board will make it an effective medium for sharing expertise
about managing terminology. Please bookmark it and use it to ask questions, make
contacts, or share information about terminology management.
More
information on this bulletin board is available from: Kara Warburton, IBM
terminologist kara@ca.ibm.com
IBM
terminology database:
http://ibmterm.torolab.ibm.com
IBM
intranet Terminology Website:
http://eou2.austin.ibm.com/global/global_int.nsf/Publish/1728
IBM
Internet Terminology Website:
http://www.ibm.com/ibm/terminology/
&
&
Write injuries in sand, kindnesses in
marble.
— French Proverb
You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you
never know how soon it will be too late.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
&
&
12-13
April 2002, Maternushaus Conference Centre, Kardinal-Frings-Strasse 1-3,
Cologne
(German
is the only official language of this symposium. No interpreting facilities
will be provided.)
At
two year intervals the German Terminology Society, DTT e.V., holds a major
symposium dealing with various aspects of terminology. The eighth symposium
organised by DTT e.V. has as its title ‘eTerminology – Professionelle’.
&
&
You may find the worst enemy or best friend
in yourself.
— English Proverb
Not until we are lost do we begin to
understand ourselves.
— Henry David Thoreau
The best mirror is a friend’s eye.
— Gaelic Proverb
&
&
1.
BACKGROUND
Dr.
Mariëtta Alberts attended a TAMA Conference from 31 January to 2 February 2001
in Antwerp, Belgium.
TAMA
stands for Technology for Advanced Mobile Applications.
The international organisers of TAMA requested the National Language Service to
present the next TAMA meeting in South Africa. It was decided that more
emphasis will be devoted to the South African needs regarding terminology
management and that the abbreviation TAMA could stand for Terminology
in Advanced Management Applications. It was also
suggested that training would form part of the conference. It would therefore
be advertised as a training-cum-conference event.
There
are many conferences on terminology and related topics in general. TAMA has
always been very exclusive: it focuses on terminology management and computer
applications, such as mobile computing.
The
international TAMA conference will also be devoted to training in various
aspects of terminology management. Trainers from abroad are willing to
participate and their expenses will probably be taken care of by UNESCO.
It
was suggested to have the TAMA Conference during the South African Spring and
to choose a venue that would depict the African Culture. The African
Association for Lexicography (AFRILEX) indicated that it would like to
co-organise the event.
The
delegates will be people who have travelled the world to all the various venues
where TAMA has been presented. They are used to everything the developed world
can offer them because they are mainly interested in high technology and
research. By coming to South Africa they would like to experience Africa. We
would like to offer them both an African experience and to show that South Africa
is a developed country with an abundance of scientific and technological
knowledge.
Proposed
Conference Theme:
Terminology
in the Era of Globalisation
Proposed
Conference Date:
7
– 11 October 2002
Proposed
Conference Venue:
The
Pelindaba Conference & Banqueting Centre
at the Misty Hills Country Hotel, Krugersdorp, Gauteng, RSA
Conference
Organisers:
Department
of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST) (Terminology Co-ordination
Section, National Language Service and Events Management) and AFRILEX
2.
TERMINOLOGY TRAINING
2.1
Background
Dr.
Christian Galinski, President of TermNet and the TAMA organisers in Austria
agreed to supply terminology training before the TAMA Conference. This is not a
usual feature at TAMA Conferences.
2.2 Trainers
Trainers from all over the world (e.g. Prof. Dr. Sue-Ellen Wright, Kent State University, USA; Prof. Dr. Klaus-Dirk Schmitz, DEUTERM, Germany; Prof. Dr. Frieda Steurs, Lessius Hogeschool, Belgium; Dr. Gerhard Budin, University of Vienna, Austria; Dr. Gabriele Sauberer