A History of Cant and Slang Dictionaries: Volume I: 1567-1784
ISBN: 9780191719875
Platform/Publisher: Oxford Academic / Yale University Press
Digital rights: Users: Unlimited; Printing: Unlimited; Download: Unlimited
Subjects: Linguistics;

The first of three volumes (volume 2, 1785-1874, forthcoming in 2005; volume 3, 1874 to present, forthcoming in 2007) comprising a complete history of the recording of English cant and slang - the jargon of sport, trade, and crime - which give unparalleled insights into the history of slang and the people who used it. Provides information on words and their meanings such as 'ziff' (a young thief), 'bundletail' (a short fat or squat lass), and 'arsworm' (a little diminutive fellow).


Julie Coleman lectures in English Historical Linguistics and Medieval Literature at the University of Leicester. She has written widely on English lexicology and lexicography from the medieval period onwards, and is founder and current chair of the International Society for Historical Lexicography and Lexicology (http://www.le.ac.uk/ee/jmc21/ishll.html).

hidden image for function call