Document Type : Research

Author

• Reza Amini

PhD in General Linguistics, Assistant Professor of Institute for Cultural Heritage and Tourism

Abstract

 In this article, Richard A. Spears’ Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Words and Expressions is reviewed. This dictionary has been translated into Persian as FARHANG-E MARDOM by Babak Mohaghegh and Masoud Ghasemian. The bilingual English – Persian version of this dictionary is useful since it has recorded a large number of slangs, colloquial expressions, taboo words, euphemistic, and dysphemistic expressions of Persian. On the other hand, it is also really useful, and at the same time surely helpful, for those who translate from English into Persian, in finding the exact meaning/s or equivalent/s of slang and colloquial idiomatic expressions of English. In addition, the English – Persian version of the dictionary includes a long forward titled “an investigation into the nature of slang” that come like a good introduction to the field full of useful points for people eager to know more about ‘’slang’’. However, there are a number of shortcomings in the bilingual English – Persian version of the dictionary including unclear system of referencing in the forward, unsuitable equivalents in some of the entries, and lack of necessary footnotes for some of the unknown equivalents provided for English utterances.

Keywords

• FARHANG-E MARDOM
• Spoken Language
• Colloquial Language
• Slangs
• Taboo Words

Main Subjects

• Linguistics and Ancient Languages