''The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations'', first published by the

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

in 1941, is an 1,100-page book listing short

quotation A quotation is the repetition of a sentence, phrase, or passage from speech or text that someone has said or written. In oral speech, it is the representation of an utterance (i.e. of something that a speaker actually said) that is introduced by ...

s that are common in

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

and culture. The 8th edition was published for print and online versions in 2014.''The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations''
8th edition. The

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical ...

begins with a preface explaining the term ''quotation''. The

dictionary A dictionary is a listing of lexemes from the lexicon of one or more specific languages, often arranged alphabetically (or by radical and stroke for ideographic languages), which may include information on definitions, usage, etymologie ...

has been compiled from extensive evidence of the quotations that are actually used in the way they have been listed. This book is not—like many quotations dictionaries—a subjective anthology of the editor's favourite quotations, but an objective selection of the quotations which are most widely known and used. Popularity and familiarity are the main criteria for inclusion, although no reader is likely to be familiar with all the quotations in this dictionary. The quotations are drawn from novels, plays, poems, essays, speeches, films radio and television broadcasts, songs, advertisements, and even book titles. It is difficult to draw the line between quotations and similar sayings like proverbs, catch-phrases, and idioms. For example, some quotations (like “The opera ain’t over till the fat lady sings”) become proverbial. These are usually included if they can be traced to a particular originator. Catch-phrases are included if there is evidence that they are widely remembered or used. Quotations are also cross-referenced. For example, on looking up Napoleon's quotation about Britain being a '' nation of shopkeepers'', one also finds

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——� ...

, who said it first. Quotations about absolute power are cross-referenced to

Lord Acton John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton, 13th Marquess of Groppoli, (10 January 1834 – 19 June 1902), better known as Lord Acton, was an English Catholic historian, politician, and writer. He is best remembered for the remark he w ...

, and from him to

William Pitt the Elder William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, (15 November 170811 May 1778) was a British statesman of the Whig group who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768. Historians call him Chatham or William Pitt the Elder to distinguish ...

, who said something similar. The dictionary has been jokingly called the ''Oxford Dikker of Quotaggers'' using the Oxford "-er". The first edition in 1941 was compiled by a committee drawn from the staff of the OUP under the editorship of Alice Mary Smyth (later

Alice Mary Hadfield Alice Mary Hadfield (14 December 1908 – 1989), born Alice Mary Smyth, was a British book editor and writer, the co-ordinating editor of the first edition of ''The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations'' (1941), and the librarian at Oxford University P ...

). She recounts some of the details of choosing and processing quotations in her book on the life of Charles Williams (one of the committee).Hadfield, p. 114-115 Later editions of the ''Dictionary'' were published in 1953 and thereafter, the 6th edition appearing in 2004 (), the 7th in 2009 (), and the 8th in 2014 (), all edited by Elizabeth Knowles.

References

Sources

* Hadfield, Alice Mary. ''An Introduction to Charles Williams.'' London: Robert Hale Ltd., 1959. * Smyth, Alice Mary, ed. ''The Oxford Book of Quotations.'' irst Edition. London: OUP, 1941.

External links

Oxford Dictionary of QuotationsInstagram Quotes & Captions
Books of quotations English culture English non-fiction literature

Quotations A quotation is the repetition of a sentence, phrase, or passage from speech or text that someone has said or written. In oral speech, it is the representation of an utterance (i.e. of something that a speaker actually said) that is introduced by ...

1941 non-fiction books English-language books {{dictionary-stub

See also

References

Sources

External links