Our Notes & References

The most comprehensive dictionary of the Russian language at the time of publication: a pleasant example attractively bound.

Vladimir Dahl (1801-72) dedicated 53 years of his life to this monumental work, which contains 200,000 words and uses 3,000 proverbs and sayings to illustrate their meaning. Dahl began collecting words for a future dictionary at the age of eighteen, and passed away working on its second edition. He was awarded the Konstantinivskaya Medal and Lomonosov Prize for his work, and in 1868 was elected an honorary member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The third and fourth editions were edited by Jan de Courtenay (1845 – 1929), one of the most influential linguists in Russia in the late 19th – early 20th century, and are famous for their inclusion of several Russian swearwords.