Knowledge organisation in LSP texts and dictionaries: a case study

1noIn LSP dictionaries the specialised knowledge contained and organised in texts is selected and restructured. This paper is focused on the analysis of a case study: the "Dizionario generale plurilingue del Lessico Metalinguistico" (DLM – General Multilingual Dictionary of the Metalinguistic Lexicon). The dictionary of linguistics terminology under examination is planned to complement the reference products available in this area of knowledge. In fact, it has a particular outline as the materials it records are directly drawn from the most representative texts produced throughout the history of linguistic speculation (§ 2.). The plan of the DLM establishes that the terminological information stored (definitions, cross-references, formal variants, translations) is directly drawn from the original texts, and not elaborated by the compilers. Therefore, the definitions of the indexed terms are not produced by terminographers: they are ‘defining quotations’ identified and extracted by specialists from the source texts. Specialised texts play an essential role in this project as they are analysed in order to both identify the core concepts used (or introduced) by their authors and to reconstruct the conceptual networks delineated in each of them. In the compilation of the DLM the problematic issues inherent in textual analysis clearly emerge (§ 3.). This is due to the fact that texts are multifaceted units where the various factors related to their structural organisation and informative content interact. The different degrees of ‘density’ of specialised information which is displayed in texts is determined, among others, by the conceptual, communicative, pragmatic, structural, cognitive, and socio-cultural components of LSP texts (§ 3.1.). The procedures of retrieval and organisation of specialised knowledge carried out in the DLM project are analysed in this study through the consideration of a sub-section of its terminological inventory, i.e. the metalinguistic units extracted from a text in which focal linguistic issues are discussed (§ 4.). Although this book was produced in the pre-scientific period of the history of linguistics, it was chosen because, in addition to providing interesting contributions to linguistics terminology – considered also from a historical viewpoint –, it yields a model for the arrangement of the conceptual relational network which is being implemented for the DLM (§ 4.1.). The bi-dimensional character of terminological records of the DLM is being integrated with graphic representations of conceptual relations, which provide a multidimensional outline to the defining section of this dictionary. The visual representation of relational networks provides further terminological information and it also makes available to the users an effective instrument for acquiring a more thorough understanding of the specialised knowledge which is transferred from LSP texts into this dictionary.openN. LEONARDILeonardi, Natasci

Corpus Analysis and Conceptual Relation Patterns

International audienceThe aim of this paper is to shed light on the notion of "conceptual relation pattern" via corpus analysis experiments. On the basis of this bottom-up approach, three main points are discussed. First the degree of dependency between conceptual relation pattern and corpus is discussed. This dependency may range from insignificant to complete; it may also be linked to corpus genre. Then, the limits of purely binary conception of relations are examined through the description of patterns taking into account argument structure. Finally, an example in which application may influence patterns choice is presented. Some generally admitted classical assumptions are discussed and revisited by presenting empirical results

Designing a multilingual dictionary of genetic terms (English, French, German and Spanish) for the European Portal Eurogene and the International Scientific Community

In the framework of the DICGENETIC Project Applying Information Technologies to Designing an English-French-German-Spanish Dictionary of Genetic Terms, financed by the Regional Government of Castilla y León, the distinguished research group team Intersemiotics, Translation and New Technologies was assigned to design an online multimedia terminology dictionary to be integrated in the learning platform Moodle. The objective of this dictionary is to provide service to users of the European genetics portal Eurogene and also to the international scientific community, with a subsequent electronic version and via the Internet

Uncertainty in deliberate lexical interventions

Language managers in their different forms (language planners, terminologists, professional neologists …) have long tried to intervene in the lexical usage of speakers, with various degrees of success: Some of their lexical items (partly) penetrate language use, others do not. Based on electronic networks of practice of the Esperanto speech community, Mélanie Maradan establishes the foundation for a new method to extract speakers’ opinions on lexical items from text corpora. The method is intended as a tool for language managers to detect and explore in context the reasons why speakers might accept or reject lexical items. Mélanie Maradan holds a master’s degree in translation and terminology from the University of Geneva/Switzerland as well as a joint doctoral degree in multilingual information processing and philosophy (Dr. phil.) from the universities of Geneva and Hildesheim/Germany. Her research interests include planned languages (Esperanto studies) as well as neology and corpus linguistics. She works as a professional translator and terminologist in Switzerland

Data, problems, heuristics and results in cognitive metaphor research

Cognitive metaphor research is characterised by the diversity of rival theories. Starting from this observation, the paper focuses on the problem of how the unity and diversity of cognitive theories of metaphor can be accounted for. The first part of the paper outlines a suitable metascientific approach which emerges as a modification of B. von Eckardt’s notion of research framework. In the second part, by the help of this approach, some aspects of the sophisticated relationship between Lakoff and Johnson’s, Glucksberg’s, and Gentner’s theories are discussed. The main finding is that the data, the problems, the heuristics and the hypotheses which have been partly shaped by the rivals contribute to the development of the particular theories to a considerable extent

Linguistic repercussions of COVID-19 : A corpus study on four languages

The global reach of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing localized policy reactions provides a case to uncover how a global crisis translates into linguistic discourse. Based on the JSI Timestamped Web Corpora that are automatically POS-tagged and accessible via SketchEngine, this study compares French, German, Dutch, and English. After identifying the main names used to denote the virus and its disease, we extracted a total of 1,697 associated terms (according to logDice values) retrieved from news media data from January through October 2020. These associated words were then organized into categories describing the properties of the virus and the disease, their spatio-temporal features and their cause–effect dependencies. Analyzing the output cross-linguistically and across the first 10 months of the pandemic, a fairly stable semantic discourse space is found within and across each of the four languages, with an overall clear preference for visual and biomedical features as associated terms, though significant diatopic and diachronic shifts in the discourse space are also attested.Peer reviewe

Uncertainty in deliberate lexical interventions

Language managers in their different forms (language planners, terminologists, professional neologists …) have long tried to intervene in the lexical usage of speakers, with various degrees of success: Some of their lexical items (partly) penetrate language use, others do not. Based on electronic networks of practice of the Esperanto speech community, Mélanie Maradan establishes the foundation for a new method to extract speakers’ opinions on lexical items from text corpora. The method is intended as a tool for language managers to detect and explore in context the reasons why speakers might accept or reject lexical items. Mélanie Maradan holds a master’s degree in translation and terminology from the University of Geneva/Switzerland as well as a joint doctoral degree in multilingual information processing and philosophy (Dr. phil.) from the universities of Geneva and Hildesheim/Germany. Her research interests include planned languages (Esperanto studies) as well as neology and corpus linguistics. She works as a professional translator and terminologist in Switzerland