Lexicographers with a specialization in the terminology of the Iberian Peninsula may be interested in attending the 10th annual symposium of the RITerm2016, which will be held in São Paulo, Brazil from the 18th to the 21st of October 2016. The official contact person for the event is Ieda Maria Alves.
Month: July 2016
Announcing the LEME Database for Lexicons of Early Modern English
LEME, of the Lexicons of Early Modern English, is a new data-base for researchers interested in historical linguistics. The data-base currently contains more than 750,000 word entries from the years 1480 to 1755. The primary sources used for the digitized compilation include lexicons from the Tudor, Stuart, Caroline, Commonwealth, and Restoration Periods. Users of the LEME can search for entries by date, title, author, subject, and genre.
How to Tell Someone’s Age When All You Know Is Her Name
What does your name tell strangers about your biological age? According to lovers of statistics and onomastics, perhaps more than you might imagine. In this interesting article, Nate Silber and Allison McCann explain how you can tell someone’s age, when all you have is their first name.
2016 Colloquium of the Henry Sweet Society for the History of Linguistic Ideas, Cambridge, England, September 13-15, 2016
From the 13th to the 15th of September, Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge will be holding its 2016 Colloquium of the Henry Sweet Society for the History of Linguistic Ideas. The theme of this year’s colloquium is “Onomastics and its History.” Information on the conference lineup, accommodation, and fees, can be found at the conference website.
About the Designation of Official Names and Proper Names for Certain Biological Products
In the pharmaceutical business, companies hoping to jump on the profit bandwagon of their competitors often release products that have no significant clinical difference to the market leaders. Makers of these “biosimilars” have long argued that their products should be allowed to carry the same generic or non-proprietary names as the name brand leaders. However, many of the major drug franchisors have fought tooth and nail against this practice, claiming territorial rights. Caught in the middle of the billion-dollar onomastic fight has been the US government. Recently, however, the FDA proposed a solution. The generic drug system would be augmented with a random set of four letters. Learn more about the proposed naming rules.
About Names: From first man to sexiest man alive, ‘Adam’ endures
Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. This week’s column explores Adam.… Read More
In a first, ‘third gender’ to cast votes
In a recent article published by “The New Indian Express”, it was announced that, for the very first time in Indian history, the electoral roll for the Kerala Assembly elections would have a third gender option.
How to pronounce EURO players’ names correctly
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has been continually beleaguered by reports of embezzlement, bribery, and general skullduggery. In an effort to shine the spotlight in a completely different direction, the UEFA has started a new campaign to show the ways the multi-billion dollar conglomerate helps to bring people together.
Visitors to the UEFA website can now find a helpful guide to correctly pronouncing the names of the top European team players. For example, to help fans (in particular English-speaking fans) pronounce France’s team players, the following advice is given: “Basic school French should help. Dimitri Payet’s surname sounds like ‘pie-ette’— equivalent to the sound of Liam Gallagher from Oasis saying ‘I ate.’” Although well-meaning, advice like this seems to have caused more jeers than cheers among Europe’s football fans.
Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources Sessions at the Leeds International Medieval Congress, Leeds, England, July 4-7, 2016
The Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources will be holding several special sessions on cross-linguistic and cross-cultural onomastics at the Leeds International Medieval Congress 2016 from the 4th to the 7th of July 2016.
Anniversary of the LGBT-inclusive preferred name and pronoun policy approval
2016 marks the first year anniversary of Ohio University’s historic decision to recognize the right of OU students to have their preferred name and pronoun used on official university listings such as class rosters, advising lists, and student ID cards.