Dictionary of Old English [DOE]

FAIN: PW-50500-10

University of Toronto (Toronto M5S 1A5 Canada)
Antonette diPaolo Healey (Project Director: July 2009 to October 2012)

The preparation of entries for the "Dictionary of Old English," a historical dictionary based on the entire extant corpus of Old English texts written between A.D. 650 and 1150.

The aim of the Dictionary of Old English (DOE) is to define the vocabulary of records written in English between 600 and 1150 C.E., using the technology of the twenty-first century. Because of its Electronic Corpus, comprising at least one copy of every Old English text, the DOE is based on a comprehensive examination of the surviving evidence. The DOE complements the other major historical dictionaries of English: the Middle English Dictionary (1100-1500 C.E.), and the Oxford English Dictionary, (which catalogues English up to the present). In December 2007, the project released DOE: A to G online, the first Web version of the first eight letters (out of 22), and in April 2008 we published a Windows-based version, DOE: A to G on CD-ROM. A transformative feature of the electronic DOE is the link to the online OED, providing a mechanism for dictionary cross-searching.

Associated Products

"'Heat' in Old English and in Chaucer's Creation of Metaphors of Love" (Article)
Title: "'Heat' in Old English and in Chaucer's Creation of Metaphors of Love"
Author: Antonette diPaolo Healey
Abstract: Each word tells its own story, a statement which has now the nature of a “general truth” articulated in the standard histories of the English language. Occasionally, however, the stories of the most basic words of the language do not receive the attention they deserve. The word ‘heat’ in Old English displays an interesting array of literal and figurative senses. High temperature (of the sun, a fire, etc.), hot condition of the atmosphere, one of the four elements / bodily humors, condition of the body (both its natural / vital heat and the high temperature caused by sickness / fever) -- all form part of its conceptual universe. From these senses cognitive metaphors arise, figurative transpositions which work because we are conscious of the literal meaning of the word. This paper will explore the different senses of polysemous ‘heat’ in Old English with a view to its later development in Chaucer’s metaphors of love.
Year: 2010
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Studies in English Medieval Language and Literature, 25
Publisher: Peter Lang

"Old English heafod 'head': A Lofty Place?" (Article)
Title: "Old English heafod 'head': A Lofty Place?"
Author: Antonette diPaolo Healey
Abstract: Anglo-Saxon use of the word 'head' offers insights into the early history of our language. In its literal, transferred, and figurative senses, it resists easy categorization and presents a range of complexity, especially in respect to the notion of 'elevation'. However, there is clear evidence that 'elevation' is not always the feature intended.
Year: 2011
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Poetica, An International Journal of Linguistic-Literary Studies, 75
Publisher: Yushudo (Tokyo)

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