The Linguist is a languages magazine for professional linguists, translators, interpreters, language professionals, language teachers, trainers, students and academics with articles on translation, interpreting, business, government, technology
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thelinguist.uberflip.com DECEMBER 2017/JANUARY 2018 The Linguist 27 REVIEWS Style guides for printers and journalists have a long and venerable history. The redoubtable Hart's Rules for Compositors and Readers at the University Press Oxford goes back to 1864, and re-emerged in 2014 as The New Hart's Rules. It is very useful in particular for layout and house style. In a similar vein, The Times produced its first style guide in 1913 as a 12-page pamphlet for staff. It has developed over the years into an authoritative work which covers everything from advice on a style that fits the august standing of the parent paper through to correct spellings of some quite recondite words; 'apothegm', for example, is preferable to 'apophthegm' (meaning 'a maxim', in case you were wondering). This is the first new edition in 25 years and it is an interesting indicator of the way in which topics (and public attitudes towards them) have changed. It is interesting to see that 25 years ago, political correctness was dismissed by saying that "the English language, especially in the USA, has become infected by a new authoritarianism", and directs users to resist absurd neologisms. It gives the same advice today, so as not to cause needless offence, but simply adds that "overblown The Times Style Guide: A guide to English usage Times Books 2017, 284 pp; ISBN 978- 0-00-814617-7 Paperback, £12.99 euphemisms and clumsy circumlocutions annoy". The entry for 'sex' in 1997 was cross-referred to 'obscenities' and 'vice', whereas today we have 'sex change' and 'sex offenders' register'. 'Gay' is frowned upon in the 1992 edition, advising writers to use 'homosexual', whereas it is now acceptable as an alternative. 'Negro' in 1992 is cross-referred to 'black'. Both entries enjoin caution, advising people to follow customary usage in this sensitive area in 1992, and to be sensitive to local usage in 2017. The term 'people of colour' has been discontinued, and 'Black British' has now made an appearance. This style guide is a very useful source of advice on those many niggling points of grammar that occur so frequently in English, such as split infinitives (which are to be avoided, as they do annoy some people). There is a half-page entry for the apostrophe, which is very practical, as are the entries for hyphens, plurals and capitalisation. There are also useful hints for writers under headings such as 'cliché', 'headlines' and 'journalese'. All in all, The Times Style Guide would be a very handy item to keep near your laptop. Professor Tim Connell, CIOL Vice-President 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Crossword no.18 Solution, page 34 Across 1. The Cockney's 'frog and toad'. (4) 3/24 across. British sitcom from 1977-79 starring Barry Evans. (4,4,8) 9. Filets _____ are small, tender pieces of beef. (7) 10. Mexican dish, perhaps named after a chef named Ignacio. (5) 11. Basic details. (4,3,5) 13. An Egyptian language, surviving now only in the Christian church. (6) 15. It goes with leave, kiss or cricket. (6) 18. Affection expressed only in order to gain a reward. (8,4) 22. Crime committed by a fire-raiser. (5) 23. Official language of Mumbai. (7) 24. See 3 across. 25. The Cockney's 'silver spoon'. (4) Down 1. An official language of Switzerland. (8) 2. A secret language used within a group, 8 down for example. (5) 4. Where you go if sent to 21 down. (6) 5. Informal representation of a claim of ignorance in English. (5) 6. An official language of Catalonia. (7) 7. It is triliteral in Arabic. (4) 8. Slang of the gay community, used by Julian and Sandy in 'Round the Horn'. (6) 12. Language of the eastern Alps from pre-Roman times. (8) 14. Classical painter who remained a spring chicken. (7) 16. Acronym, designating pieces of kit used for detection of moving objects. (6) 17. Portmanteau word for a publication aimed at young males. (6) 19. Family of over 600 languages in southern Africa. (5) 20. Perform better. (5) 21. The Cockney's 'bucket and pail'. (4)