The Dictionary Society of North America: A History of the Early Years (Part I)

The present article—in two parts, of which this is the first—is a history of DSNA’s infancy and youth, thus also a chapter in the history of the language sciences more generally, as well as a contribution to the sociology of organizations. It begins with a revealing controversy over the society’s name and thus the society’s identity, and proceeds to outline the intellectual context that made establishment of a North American society for all matters lexicographical and lexicological both desirable and possible. After that prehistory, the first part of the article ends with an account of the founding of that very society. The second part will describe DSNA’s membership, leadership, and varied activities from 1977 to 1989, the first “period” of the society’s history.