UTRECHT – Airfryer, big tech, body shaming, fintech, influencer and street food will be featured in the new Dikke Van Dale, which will be published next month. The dictionary adds a total of 979 English words, which have become so established that they are included in the best-known dictionary of the Dutch language.
This is not unique because the English trend has been going on in recent years, says editor-in-chief Ton den Boon of the Van Dale. It started with the computer and the internet and, according to him, you see more and more words being added, mainly due to the influence of (social) media.
“Our culture is also very focused on the Anglo-Saxon language area, America and England,” he says. “And that means that many English words end up in Dutch.”
Other languages
The book is also enriched with words from Berber, Chinese, Danish, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Moroccan Arabic, Mexican Spanish, Portuguese, Spanish and Turkish. From Arabic, for example, tahina (pasta/sauce) is given a place, from Italian peperonata (vegetable dish), from Japanese matcha (green tea powder) and from Turkish dolmus (van).
Super spreader and climate pusher
As already known, the book will also contain thousands of new words related to climate, finance, economy, social media, politics, inclusiveness and of course corona. They range from super-diffuser to climate changer: “These words show that society is changing and that new words are created in the process.”
Over the past 30 years, a new dictionary has been published every 7 to 10 years. The previous edition came out in 2015, the latest Van Dale will be available from March 22.
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