Tom McArthur (23 August 1938 – 30 March 2020) was a Scottish

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

lexicographer Lexicography is the study of lexicons, and is divided into two separate academic disciplines. It is the art of compiling dictionaries. * Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionaries. * Theoreti ...

, and the founding editor of ''

English Today ''English Today'' is an academic journal on the English language, established in 1985 by Tom McArthur (who edited it until 2008) and published quarterly by Cambridge University Press. Its scope covers all aspects of current English and its variet ...

''. Among the many books he wrote and edited, he is best known for the ''Longman Lexicon of Contemporary English'', the first ''thematic''

monolingual learner's dictionary A monolingual learner's dictionary (MLD) is designed to meet the reference needs of people learning a foreign language. MLDs are based on the premise that language-learners should progress from a bilingual dictionary to a monolingual one as they b ...

, which complemented the ''

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English The ''Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English'' (''LDOCE''), first published by Longman in 1978, is an advanced learner's dictionary, providing definitions using a restricted vocabulary, helping non-native English speakers understand meani ...

'' by bringing together sets of words with related meanings, ''Worlds of Reference'', as well as the ''Oxford Guide to World English'' (2002, paperback 2003). McArthur's most notable work was '' The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (1992), a 1200-page work with 95 contributors and 70 consultants, which was hailed by ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' as a "leviathan of accessible scholarship" and was listed on the ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' bestseller list. He published an abridged edition in 1996 and a concise edition in 1998. A second edition was published in 2018, co-edited with Jacqueline Lam McArthur and Lise Fontaine. McArthur also taught at the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a public university , public research university in Exeter, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of Min ...

's Dictionary Research Centre, which was established in 1984 by Reinhard Hartmann. In 1987 he collaborated with

David Crystal David Crystal, (born 6 July 1941) is a British linguist, academic, and prolific author best known for his works on linguistics and the English language. Family Crystal was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, on 6 July 1941 after his mother had ...

to produce an 18-part radio version of a TV series ''The Story of English'' for

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

. and in 1997 he co-founded the Asian Association for Lexicography. Earlier, he published books about Indian philosophy and the ''

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' (c ...

'', and the languages of Scotland, wrote unpublished novels, served as an officer-instructor in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

, taught in

Sutton Coldfield Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, known locally as Sutton ( ), is a town and civil parish in the City of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south ...

and in Bombay Cathedral School, and reported for local newspapers. McArthur died aged 81 on 30 March 2020.

Appointments

* Lecturer and Director of Studies at Extra Mural English Language Courses,

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

* 1979–1983: Associate Professor of English,

Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières The Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) (''English: University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières''), also known as "l'université du peuple", established in 1969 and mainly located in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada, is a public universi ...

, Canada * 1987–2000: Visiting Professor, Dictionary Research Centre,

* 2001: Visiting Professor,

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university an ...

Lingnan University Lingnan University (LN/LU), formerly called Lingnan College, is a public liberal arts university in Hong Kong. It aims to provide students with an education in the liberal arts tradition and has joined the Global Liberal Arts Alliance since ...

Xiamen University Xiamen University (; Southern Min: ''Ē-mn̂g-toā-o̍h''), colloquially known as Xia Da (; Southern Min: ''Hā-tāi''), is a national public research university in Xiamen, Fujian, China. Founded in 1921 by Tan Kah Kee, a Chinese patriotic exp ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McArthur, Tom Academics of the University of Exeter Linguists from the United Kingdom 1938 births 2020 deaths