Wednesday, December 10, 2008



Christian words deleted from influential British dictionary

We read:
"For generations, schoolchildren have been captivated by the magic of nature, gripped by tales from British history and fascinated by learning about our Christian traditions. Today, however, crucial words used to describe these traditional topics have been stripped from an influential children's dictionary in favour of more 'modern' terms. Among the entries which have disappeared from the latest edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary are disciple, coronation, empire, piglet and acorn. In their place come the likes of MP3 player, broadband, biodegradable, committee and celebrity.

Publishers Oxford University Press say the dictionary needs to evolve to reflect the fact that Britain has become a modern, multicultural, multi-faith society in which fewer children grow up in rural environments. But academics and headteachers said the changes to the 10,000-entry volume - aimed at over-sevens - would deprive a new generation of links with their heritage. The changes were highlighted by a mother-of-four who noticed that words like moss and fern had vanished from the latest edition while helping her son with her homework.

Lisa Saunders, from County Down, Northern Ireland, compared six editions since the 1970s and was horrified to discover that a whole range of words relating to Christianity, nature and British history had been axed over the years. 'The Christian faith still has a strong following,' she said. 'To eradicate so many words associated with Christianity will have a big effect on the numerous primary schools who use it.'....

And Anthony Seldon, the master of Wellington College, a leading private school in Berkshire, said: 'I am stunned that words like "saint", "buttercup", "heather"and "sycamore" have all gone and I grieve it. 'I think as well as being descriptive, the Oxford Junior Dictionary has to be prescriptive too, suggesting not just words that are used but words that should be used.

Source

Andrew Bolt has more.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Is there ANYTHING deserving of respect coming out of Britain these days?

Anonymous said...

I'm all for it. It means that future generations of Britians will be less educated than those from the U.S. making us more competitive. Thank you dictionary publisher for making this possible.

Anonymous said...

The first two comments suggest or confirm that americans are mean, petty and underhand in their competitive natures.
Otherwise, it's very sad that the next generations are being encouraged to divorce themselves from their cultural heritage.

Anonymous said...

This is just another nail in britains coffin, with not that many more left to go.

As for Americans being mean, we're not mean, we're stupid, for not letting Hitler take and keep britain, rather than letting it become a nation of socialist pansy's.

Anonymous said...

The first two comments suggest or confirm that americans are mean, petty and underhand in their competitive natures.

Don't worry - the next version will remove the words mean, petty, and underhanded from the British Lexicon, so that nobody can be those things.

"Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it." - George Orwell

Anonymous said...

So having taken Britain (if he could - but in fact gave up before the US even entered the war), do you think he would not have attacked the US after you declared war on him and sent you a few of his long-range V rockets before your atom bomb was developed?

Anonymous said...

... if you could deliver an atom bomb without a rocket/missile.

Anonymous said...

Before the US entered the war it was using the UK to fight Nazi Germany by proxy (proxy wars being a common tactic) and lending material help/loans to the UK (which actually had to be paid back) - and when the US was forced into the war by Japan it agreed with Churchill that it then had to be total war with Germany until its unconditional defeat - and ditto Japan.

Anonymous said...

"Britain has become a modern, multicultural, multi-faith society..."

Apparently not!

Anonymous said...

And this surprises anyone? Of course Britain is going to remove "Christian-oriented" words, because it's essential as they step aside and let Muslim influence take over.

Anonymous said...

Was this decision made based on Britains new Sharia law?

Anonymous said...

Are you deliberately misrepresenting what some quarters in the UK say about muslim "ghettos" getting on with their own self-contained administration? I don't think this dictionary has anything to do with that! Do you REALLY think so?

Anonymous said...

Sounds more like the dumbing down of the English language than a purge of Christian words.