The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology (Hardcover)

~ C.T. Onions (Editor), G. W. S. Friedrichsen (Assistant), R. W. Burchfield (Assistant)
Key Phrases: origin unkn, till xvii, ambuldre walk, Jesus Christ, Peterborough Chron, Middle Ages (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Dr. C.T. Onions first joined the staff of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1895. He worked on the OED, the Shorter OED, and then published his Shakespeare Glossary in 1911. A wonderful and learned scholar, he died in 1966 as the first edition of The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology was going to press. Assisted by G.W.S. Friedrichsen and R.W. Burchfield, Onions created a magnificent work of erudition, with 24,000 main entries. Including their derivatives, the dictionary delves into the origins of more than 38,000 words.

For each entry, the dictionary provides the correct pronunciation, followed by a short definition, and the century and source of the word's first recording. Then come the etymological notes. Thus one learns that "froth" (an aggregation of small bubbles on liquid) was first noted in the 14th century, in Sir Gawain and the Bible, that it comes from the Old Norse frooa, and was taken from there into German (fraup) and Old English (froth). Now in its fifth printing and a standard reference for scholars, Onions's opus is still the most comprehensive etymological dictionary of English ever to be published. --Stephanie Gold

Product Description

This comprehensive dictionary by one of our century's greatest language scholars provides a clear and brief account of the origins, history, and sense-development of more than 38,000 words.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1042 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; Reprint 1996 edition (December 31, 1966)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198611129
• ISBN-13: 978-0198611127
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.6 x 2.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #232,183 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

90 of 93 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oxford is the best - by a whisker., September 4, 2002

By	Prometheus - See all my reviews

Other reviewers claim that the Chambers Dictionary of Etymology is a better book than the Oxford Dictionary of Etymology. I must disagree. I was recently in a bookstore that had both in stock, and I was able to compare the two. Overall, I found the Chambers to be less informative than the Oxford book.

Admittedly, I did not have the time to compare a lot of entries, but the few words I did look up showed a pattern that was hard to dismiss. In all of the cases that I saw, the Oxford dictionary included much more of the history of the word and often went back to the Latin root as well as proposing possible alternate developments of the word. The Chambers dictionary, on the other hand, tended to trace a more linear path and often only went as far back as the Old English or Old French root.

While the Chambers Dictionary of Etymology is a very clear and concise work..., I feel the Oxford Dictionary of Etymology has a slight advantage in precision and depth. Perhaps (as one reviewer has stated) the Chambers has more entries overall, but I feel this has come at the price of a lack of depth of history behind each entry. The Oxford book may have less entries, but each entry contains all the information anyone would ever need.

All in all, I think both books are way ahead of their competitors, but if you want the ultimate in depth, go for the Oxford publication. If you want a good dictionary of etymology at a reasonable price, get the Chambers book.

104 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Look Elsewhere, April 3, 2000

By A Customer

Though the Oxford Etymology is an excellent work, it doesn't read well as a dictionary - being essentially a selection of edited etymological notes from the Original OED. The scholarship is dry, and cryptic... To appreciate this contrast, take a look at the Barnhart Etymology Dictionary, recently re-released as the Chamber's Dictionary of Etymology - with at least three times the material in terms of etymological research and definitions at less than half the price! What's especially useful for American readers is that the Barnhart / Chambers is drawn almost entirely from American sources and scholarship. IF you're only going to buy one etymology dictionary, get the Chambers - but if you're hooked, then the Oxford is an excellent adjunct to the more exhaustive Chambers/Barnhart, balancing the American scholarship with a decidedly UK English orientation.

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great to just browse through..., October 23, 1999

By	K - See all my reviews

...or read, or skip from thought to thought with.

The defintions are extremely concise and the etymology section for each word is often also brief. Longer entries occur when a story or individual or specific event is behind the word. Nice and readable printing and a nice, small, thick size. As far as I can tell, this book has not been updated since publication in the sixties; okay by me because words coined since then can be researched using the net.