Operesheni Futa

This massive authoritative Swahili dictionary, is the most definitive and comprehensive in existence. It has taken a team of lexicographers and academics fourteen years to prepare, with the support of the Institute of Kiswahili Research in Dar es Salaam. The last comparable edition was in 1939, and was primarily intended to help the user to comprehend English texts. The dictionary records new words and meanings of words which the language has acquired since 1939; and provides lexicographical information needed by current dictionary users.There are more than 50,000 entries, with an attempt to give every English word an equivalent in Swahili, or otherwise a phrase; and the vocabulary covers both general and specialized language. Guidance is provided on use and connotation, word formation and syntax, and derivatives and compounds of a headword are explicitly shown in each entry. The full information and arrangement given for each entry is: headword, homographs, wordclass, alternative spelling of a headword, cross-reference, gloss, definition, subject label, usage label, regional label, senses separated by numbers, illustrative examples, compounds, derivatives, and adjectival complementation.

Not only is this the most comprehensive English-Swahili dictionary to date (about 60,000 entries) - it is also the first one to include phonetic transcription. It covers all major fields of interest. American pronunciation is shown in cases differing from standard British pronunciation. In addition the dictionary abounds in synonyms and suggested alternative translations. In other words, this is a book not only for looking up in, but also for learning from. Willy Kirkeby has taught at secondary schools in Norway, Germany and Tanzania, and has been compiling a comprehensive selection of dictionaries. These include English-Norewegian and Norwegian-English dictionaries in both comprehensive and smaller editions.