How can cultural differences be treated in dictionaries.

What is it about?

Cultural terms are difficult to treat in dictionaries and one way in which to do that is to use a functional approach. This means that cultural terms are treated differently depending on the function of the dictionary in that users consult dictionaries in search for information relating to discrete situations. This paper includes a discussion of various ways in which lexicographers can present information about cultural terms in different ways and at the same time meet the needs of different user groups. Several illustrations and examples are presented.

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Why is it important?

This paper explains how a fuctional approach to lexicography can help lexicographers treat cultural terms in ways that meet the information needs of users. Depending on the functon of the dictionary, a particular cultural term can be presented and explained in different ways and targeted to the needs of users. The functional approach takes user needs as its point of departure in order to find new theoretical and practical ways that help lexicographers deal with cultural phenomena.