On 04/12/06, charles.r.matthews@ntlworld.com charles.r.matthews@ntlworld.com wrote:
"Oldak Quill" wrote
WikiFable sounds a little narrow in scope. I'm not sure what approach a larger project would take: creative writing in general?
Traditional dictionaries 'of phrase and fable' contain, as well as mythology, proverbs, folkways, odd expressions. Random page opening: a page with 'enfant terrible', 'England's Darling' (turns out to be Hereward the Wake), 'Queen's English', 'Englishman's home is his castle', inter alia. (And 'inter alia' is between 'IQ' and 'intercalary'.) The cover alludes to 'myth, folklore, legend and literature'.
I'm not suggesting anything quite so diffuse, but there is this genre of dictionary, and we already have the wiki dictionary, and quotation dictionary, in place.
One of the things I have had on my userpage for a couple of years is my theory that Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, after being crossbred with Usenet and Brewer's...
(For those looking blank in the back, [[Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable]] is the marvellous and incomparable Victorian grandfather of all such works - indeed, these days, most of them are an updated version of one of the out-of-copyright editions. Broadly speaking, it was a handbook of "things you might find allusions to in your reading" - so historical and mythical events and places, odd turns of phrase, nicknames, obscure dictionary definitions... It is a joy and a treasure to own, and one of the most enduring literary creations of its time. Buy one today - Wordsworth do a cheap paperback reprint for about three quid.)