Susan Margaret Butler (born 1948) is an Australian lexicographer, who was the editor and publisher of the '' Macquarie Dictionary'' of

Australian English Australian English (AusE, AusEng, AuE, AuEng, en-AU) is the set of varieties of the English language native to Australia. It is the country's common language and ''de facto'' national language; while Australia has no official language, Engli ...

from its first edition in 1981 until its seventh in 2017, and her retirement in 2018. Butler intended to become a composer, and majored in Latin and Greek at the University of Sydney before working in a factory. In 1970, she was employed by Jacaranda Press as a research assistant on a proposed dictionary of Australian English. Over the next ten years, Butler became the dictionary's editor, and published its first edition in 1981. In addition to the Macquarie, Butler has written several lexicographical books including ''The Dinkum Dictionary: The Origins of Australian Words'' and ''The Aitch Factor: Adventures in Australian English''. In 2018, Butler was made an

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

for "distinguished service to the community as a lexicographer and author, as a facilitator of academic discourse on Australian English language, and to commercial publishing".

References

1948 births Living people Australian book editors Australian lexicographers University of Sydney alumni Officers of the Order of Australia {{Australia-writer-stub