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The Dictionary Wars: The American Fight over the English Language Hardcover – May 28, 2019

by Peter Martin (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 53 ratings
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A compelling history of the national conflicts that resulted from efforts to produce the first definitive American dictionary of English

In The Dictionary Wars, Peter Martin recounts the patriotic fervor in the early American republic to produce a definitive national dictionary that would rival Samuel Johnson’s 1755 Dictionary of the English Language. But what began as a cultural war of independence from Britain devolved into a battle among lexicographers, authors, scholars, and publishers, all vying for dictionary supremacy and shattering forever the dream of a unified American language.

The overwhelming questions in the dictionary wars involved which and whose English was truly American and whether a dictionary of English should attempt to be American at all, independent from Britain. Martin tells the human story of the intense rivalry between America’s first lexicographers, Noah Webster and Joseph Emerson Worcester, who fought over who could best represent the soul and identity of American culture. Webster believed an American dictionary, like the American language, ought to be informed by the nation’s republican principles, but Worcester thought that such language reforms were reckless and went too far. Their conflict continued beyond Webster’s death, when the ambitious Merriam brothers acquired publishing rights to Webster’s American Dictionary and launched their own language wars. From the beginning of the nineteenth century to the end of the Civil War, the dictionary wars also engaged America’s colleges, libraries, newspapers, religious groups, and state legislatures at a pivotal historical moment that coincided with rising literacy and the print revolution.

Delving into the personal stories and national debates that arose from the conflicts surrounding America’s first dictionaries, The Dictionary Wars examines the linguistic struggles that underpinned the founding and growth of a nation.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    368 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Princeton University Press
  4. Publication date
    May 28, 2019
  5. Dimensions
    6.5 x 1.5 x 9.6 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0691188912
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0691188911
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year"

"[A] riveting history. . . . The author navigates a complex story, bringing to life the passions and ideologies that shaped the early American lexicon." ― New Yorker

"Wonderfully told. . . . For a tale of lexicographic intrigue, Mr. Martin’s book is unexcelled."---Bryan A. Garner, Wall Street Journal

"Engaging and informative. . . . The Dictionary Wars . . . forays into copyright law, educational policy, religious revivalism, and other pressures on the verbal life of the nation."---Christopher Benfey, New York Review of Books

"Martin is a steady and thorough guide to what he calls the ‘endless labyrinths of lexicography’, and in Dictionary Wars he succeeds in dramatising what could have been mere bibliography."---Max Norman, Literary Review

"An informative and often pleasantly surprising cultural history." ― Kirkus

"With an impressive breadth of research, The Dictionary Wars invites contemplation of the ways in which language itself can affect the soul of a nation."---Meagan Logsdon, Foreword Reviews

"Reanimates a 19th-century ‘civil war over words’ that shaped how Americans speak and write. . . . Anyone who loves words for their own sake will be entertained." ― Publishers Weekly

"What [The Dictionary Wars] does best is to demonstrate that while characters win or lose, the very viciousness of the fight ended up benefiting the whole language and all of us who use it. For those of us nerdy and wordy enough to love the language as well as use it, this is profound."---Nicholas Clairmont, Washington Examiner

"Martin’s account of the dictionary feuds of the 19th century is as lively and entertaining as the battle itself."---Patricia T. O’Conner, New York Times

"Peter Martin’s The Dictionary Wars: The American Fight Over the English Language shows Noah Webster as every bit the sort of ideologue who is convinced he has a historical mission and carries himself accordingly."---Scott McLemee, Inside Higher Ed

"The Dictionary Wars is a fascinating unveiling of how American English became what it is today." ― Desi News

"[The Dictionary Wars] celebrate[s] the development of literature and language that would give the United States of America its own cultural identity. [It] provide[s] a foundational context for the study of our literature and communication and help[s] us celebrate American culture."---Michel L. Ramsey, Roanoke Times

"Martin’s book includes a substantial amount of archival research which will undoubtedly be a boon to scholars of the dictionary wars."---Kory Stamper, Times Literary Supplement

"Martin gives a textured account of the personal, scholarly, and business conflicts that erupted with Webster’s first dictionary. . . . Folded into this tale are aspects of print capitalism, material culture, and business history."---Matthew Garrett, ALH Online Review

"As well as providing an unparalleled account of the making of American English and the ineffable Anglo-American connection, Martin’s study is an invaluable contribution to the field. It is a prolific reference work of commendable scholarship drawing on laborious documentation, consistent, informative, and copious in exemplification, one that reads like a passionate saga and an academic resource at one and the same time."---Adriana Neagu, American, British and Canadian Studies

Review

“The level of specific, thorough attention given to a particular period of U.S. lexicography sets The Dictionary Wars apart from other lexicographical histories. It tells a great, human story.”―Lynne Murphy, author of The Prodigal Tongue: The Love-Hate Relationship between American and British English

"Peter Martin’s highly readable work untangles the surprising plot twists that have resulted in Americans’ popular acceptance of the name Webster as being synonymous with dictionary. The tale is far more dramatic and surprising than many might imagine and this lively account sets the record straight."―Orin Hargraves, past president of the Dictionary Society of North America

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Princeton University Press (May 28, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0691188912
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0691188911
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.5 x 1.5 x 9.6 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 53 ratings

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Peter Martin

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
53 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

John D. Cofield
5.0 out of 5 stars Making English American
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2019
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In the late 1700s and early 1800s the newly born United States faced a crisis of self-confidence. Confronted with far wealthier and imposing Great Britain, many Americans believed that following their mother country's lead in cultural matters was their only safe course. Challenging that belief was a nettlesome, argumentative New Englander named Noah Webster, who maintained that American culture and republican values could only be enhanced and preserved through a new, American style of English, with simplified and common sense spellings and pronunciations. Webster's lengthy efforts to create a dictionary of American English and his struggles to make it the standard reference for American schools are ably chronicled here by Peter Martin.

Noah Webster is remembered today as the man who took the "u" out of words like colour and neighbour and reversed the "re" in centre and theatre. He also had a long list of other "improvements" and "reforms" he wished to see in American English, most of which, thankfully, never caught on. His dictionary was published in a series of editions starting in 1828 and faced competition from other American word scholars, most importantly Joseph Worcester, who was less interested in reforming the language. After Webster's death his "dictionary war" was carried on by his family and most importantly by his publishers, the Merriam brothers whose name is now permanently attached to his own.

I enjoyed the first segments of The Dictionary Wars, which deal with Webster, Worcester, and their attempts to create American dictionaries very much because of the prickliness of the personalities involved. I happen to own a Webster's Blue Back Speller from the early 1900s that once belonged to my great-grandfather, and so I found the sections dealing with the Speller particularly entertaining. The last part dealing with the competition to become the standard American reference tended to bog down in places, chiefly because of both sides' habit of carrying on the controversy through rival pamphleteering and newspapering in sometimes excruciating detail. Nevertheless The Dictionary Wars is an overall enjoyable and enlightening read about the rise of a new American culture.
11 people found this helpful
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Christian Schlect
4.0 out of 5 stars As Reported by Truthful James
Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2019
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A great history for all lovers of dictionaries and the English language, as well as for those wondering how it came about that nearly every home in America now has a reference book with the name Webster's stamped on its spine.

While taken as a whole this book is most enjoyable, I found that it does bog down a bit in the middle with great detail given on the testy back and forth of the advocates of the two principal lexicographers of early middle 19th-century America, Noah Webster and Joseph Worcester.

With this minor quibble, this is a well-written and informative effort by the noted author and scholar Peter Martin.

Those who enjoy well-assembled books will appreciate here its informative appendices, chapter notes, bibliography, and above all a copy of Bret Hartes' immortal poem "The Spelling Bee at Angels."
23 people found this helpful
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Dr. James E. Skibo
5.0 out of 5 stars If you read dictionaries, you'll love this book!
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2019
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Buy it just for its binding...it is the pinnacle of how a book should be made....cloth binding (how often do you see that anymore), Smythe-sewn signatures, silk spine, acid free, and more. Incredibly well-made as only university presses tend to do anymore. Aside from the binding, it is a fascinating read covering the dictionary "wars" and the passionate struggle over the language of the United States. Today, we take word use somewhat for granted or figure whatever spell-check tells us is correct must be so; however, we got to where we are by a not so easy path. This book chronicles that better than anything I have read thus far. And, yes, I do have the 23-volume OED and, yes, I do pickup a volume at random sometimes and start reading.
22 people found this helpful
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Lisa Faller Frick
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent narrator
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2021
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The narrator was superb and the story very interesting. We hope to find more books narrated by this reader
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demanding reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely superb
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2020
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See the five star reviews. Extremely readable, fascinating and enjoyable. And as one reviewer noted, an outstanding book...acid free paper, beautiful binding...
One person found this helpful
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TruthSeeker
4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting work on a seemingly dry subject
Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2019
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I am always surprised at what folks will argue about, and this another instance. Great debates and acrimony on the subject of English and American language dictionaries, correct grammar books, etc. by highly intelligent men. I think most of the bitterness came out of the American Revolution and the dictionaries were just a vehicle for another fight.
In any case, this is a well-written tome that is interesting in spite of the subject matter. If you like American history, or history in general, grab a copy.
10 people found this helpful
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Cheonasty
5.0 out of 5 stars A tad arcane but fascinating.
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2019
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Exceptionally well written account of a fascinating lexicography rivalry.
One person found this helpful
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Tony Moore
3.0 out of 5 stars This one is for the dictionary fan
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2019
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Interesting subject but rather too much fine detail
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Top reviews from other countries

CP
5.0 out of 5 stars Scholarly and accessible! The best kind of academic writing.
Reviewed in Canada on October 23, 2019
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I’m an academic who specializes in stuff like this. I was impressed by how thorough Peter Martin’s research was—and how readable the book is.
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Miguel Angel Vazquez
5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh, surprising and moving
Reviewed in Spain on September 23, 2019
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Amongst the things that my mother left me, there was a 1848 Webster Quarto. I had always known that this book has a fairly high price. Now, thanks to this book, I know that it has also a high value, at least for me.

I have tasted every bit of the story told in the book. Actually, I deem very difficult that an actual war could be so gripping than that described in the text. A superb reading.
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William Hanigsberg
5.0 out of 5 stars On time
Reviewed in Canada on September 20, 2019
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arrived as promised
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