A critical evaluation of bilingual Chinese/English dictionaries for elementary and intermediate Mandarin learners at Stellenbosch University

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The number of Chinese-learners in South Africa has increased rapidly in recentyears, but the quality of the dictionaries that are available for their use has notimproved much. The more students study Chinese, the more it becomes necessary tocreate suitable dictionaries to facilitate their studies. In the hope of meeting this need,this study selects two written dictionaries commonly used by students at StellenboschUniversity in South Africa, namely the Oxford Beginner's Chinese Dictionary and theConcise English-Chinese Chinese-English Dictionary, to analyze, comment on andcompare in terms of structure and equivalence. Using the results of this analysis, thisstudy offers suggestions for improving the quality of future Mandarin learner'sdictionaries.This study takes into consideration the situation faced by students when learningChinese abroad, especially in South Africa, the development of pedagogicallexicography in Chinese-learner's dictionaries in China and abroad, the relationshipbetween online dictionaries and written dictionaries, and some special characteristicsof the Chinese language, all of which factors greatly influence the making of adictionary.Theoretically and methodically, this study is based on Function Theory aspresented by Sven Tarp. According to Function Theory, before writing a dictionary,lexicographers must analyze specific types of users in specific types of situations.This study attempts to follow Tarp's suggestion by analyzing a small group ofdictionary users with the help of a survey conducted by the author in an attempt to geta general idea of how Mandarin learners at Stellenbosch University use dictionaries.The main focus of this study is the frame structure, microstructure,macrostructure and dictionary equivalence in two dictionaries--Concise andBeginner's. After carefully analyzing these aspects of the dictionaries, the authoridentifies the sections of these dictionaries which successfully present information ina way that will be most beneficial for their intended audiences. The study goes on to pinpoint less-successful sections of the two dictionaries and provides suggestions forimprovement. In sum, this study focuses on using the principle of Function Theory todetermine what features should be included in Mandarin learner's dictionaries to makethem more suitable for elementary and intermediate learners of Mandarin atStellenbosch University, in South Africa, and, by extension, in other parts of the world.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University