and Picture Dictionaries
Two very different German-English dictionaries
Lilliput Dictionary
German-English
(English-German version also available)
Langenscheidt, 1977
Vinyl cover, 576 pages
ISBN: 0-8872-9403-0
Picture Dictionary
German-English
Langenscheidt, 1992
Paperback, illustrated
(Hardcover edition also available)
ISBN: 0-8872-9858-3
Originally published by
Éditions Rényi, Inc., Toronto, Canada
Paperback
The photo on the right shows the obvious contrast. Just a glance tells you that we're talking about two different species here! Langenscheidt's Lilliput Dictionary measures a miniscule 1-1/2 x 2 inches and easily fits in the palm of your hand! (Yes, that's a US nickel coin next to the blue Lilliput.) The larger Picture Dictionary measures a standard 8-1/2 x 11 inches and is an illustrated glossary for children or adults.
Ironically, the much smaller Lilliput offers over 6,500 entries, while the larger Picture Dictionary only covers about 3,300 terms. But this is like comparing apples and oranges. Each of these two German-English dictionaries from the German Langenscheidt publishing house is designed for completely different purposes.
Let's start with the smaller of the two (much smaller!).
For some reason I found myself fascinated with the Lilliput Dictionary. It has an almost toy-like quality about it that makes you want to pick it up and thumb through it. But at the same time the Lilliput is more than a toy or a novel gift idea. Despite its diminutive size, it is a practical, useful German-English dictionary. Though smaller than an average matchbook, the Lilliput's 576 pages contain over 6,500 entries – by my rough estimate.
"It has an almost toy-like quality about it that makes you want to pick it up and thumb through it."
Although the Lilliput is fascinating, it isn't perfect. Among its failings is the lack of many modern words. You'll look in vain for terms such as "e-mail," "CD" or "fax machine." And there's a very logical reason for this: the Lilliput German-English Dictionary hasn't been updated since 1977! Although you'll find "die Schreibmaschine" (typewriter), forget about trying to find either "der Videorecorder" or "der Computer." It does list "die Rechenmaschine" for "calculator" and "Warenzeichen" for "trademark" ("Lilliput" is a registered trademark). The 1977 copyright also means you won't find the new German spelling either. The "Lilliputian" characteristics of this tiny dictionary include a rather small type size that may be difficult for some people to read. However, the print is very clear and I had no problem reading it myself.
Despite the few above-mentioned drawbacks, I can still recommend the Lilliput Dictionary for travelers or anyone who wants to pack lightly. It is quite adequate for average touristic needs. Langenscheidt's Lilliput series includes an English-to-German edition, plus many other language combinations. At a reasonable US$3.75 (sometimes less), the Lilliput is an example of good things coming in small packages. (See our overview and links for this dictionary on the next page.)
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I like the Langenscheidt Picture Dictionary for different reasons. This dictionary lives up to its name by using "whimsical" color illustrations to help explain 3,336 vocabulary items in German and English. Arranged in English alphabetical order, each page has 20 pictured items, many with example sentences or phrases. For instance, the entry for "golf" shows a man swinging a golf club, and the sentence: "Onkel Ernst spielt Golf."
The Picture Dictionary also goes beyond the usual nouns-only illustrated lexicon by including terms such as "inside" and a picture of a boy standing inside a carton/box with the phrase "im Karton drin." There's also a useful end index that allows you to look up any German word (with genders for nouns) and locate its entry/picture. Both American and British English terms are given where there's a difference. (Even after several visits to the UK, I had never run across "hoarding" in the sense of "billboard" until I saw it in this lexicon!) Sensibly, the Picture Dictionary forgoes a picture for some terms, offering sample sentences in English and German instead. The sentences for the verb "recover" even deal with two of its possible meanings: "to get better" (sich erholen) or "to get back" (zurückbekommen),
Minor complaints about the Picture Dictionary include the use of the old German spelling and some odd vocabulary choices for a dictionary that claims to be based on word frequency. I don't remember ever seeing "incense (burner)" (der Weihrauchträger) in any word frequency list of the top 3,000 words in any language. Nor are "blacksmith" (der Schmied) and "chick peas" (Kichererbsen) words that come up frequently in a basic German conversation. Because of its nature, the Picture Dictionary also leaves out common words like dass (which it would have spelled daß!)
But the many useful words this dictionary includes more than make up for any minor quibbles one might have. This is a dictionary that even an adult can enjoy and profit from. (I discovered a couple of new expressions myself!) Parents with young children can use the Picture Dictionary as a fun bilingual picture book. Older children can browse and read it for themselves... if they can get it away from the adults!
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