Abstract
ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE “TDK TÜRKÇE SÖZLÜK” FROM THE FIRST PUBLICATION TO THE CURRENT VERSION
In dictionaries, information regarding lexical entries such as part of speech, sources etc. are generally given right after the entry in the form abbreviations. This method is also used in the Türkçe Sözlük, which has been published by the Türk Dil Kurumu since 1944. This dictionary is the most widely known and commonly used dictionary in Turkey. Having eleven editions so far, the content and size of the dictionary has increased and lexical entries have been considerably diversified. This diversification has also affected the use of abbreviations. Even though the number of abbreviations used in each and every edition has more or less stayed the same, the following alterations have been made from one edition to another:
1. Abbreviations have changed whenever words are replaced by a new term referring to the same concept; adıl: ad. instead of zamir: zm.
2. Even though some words’ meanings and usage have remained the same, the abbreviations for them have changed. For example, to specify nouns (“isim” in Turkish), the letter “i” was used in one of the previous editions whereas the abbreviation “is” was used in others.
3. Some concepts and terms are eliminated along with their abbreviations as in the case of the term insanbilim (anthropology) and its abbreviations “in”.
4. The very same abbreviation is used for more than one term. For example, the abbreviation “dilb’’ is used for linguistics (dilbilim) in some editions, whereas in others it indicates grammar (dil bilgisi).
In this article, findings and observations regarding the use of abbreviations in all editions of the TDK Türkçe Sözlük will be reviewed and discussed.
Keywords
Lexicography, abbrevation, comparison, Türk Dil Kurumu, Türkçe Sözlük
