Lhe new version of the Larousse dictionary is beginning to unfold. Non-fungible tokens (“NFT” in English), wokism and halloumi are among the words that will enter the 2023 edition of the Larousse dictionary next June, the publishing house said on Monday May 9. “This new edition incorporates 150 new words, meanings, phrases and expressions testifying to both the vitality and the diversity of the French language,” said Larousse editions in a press release.
Still very little known, a definition of NFT (or JNF in French) has been established. It is thus a “non-reproducible and tamper-proof digital file representing a unique asset, virtual or physical object (work of art, tweet, piece of music, etc.), which is listed in a blockchain and to which is associated a digital certificate of authenticity and ownership. At the same time, the Larousse also consecrates “crypto art”, the artistic movement that produces NFTs.
Another word that we now hear daily, especially in certain political currents, is “wokism”. According to the next Larousse, this designates “the woke-inspired ideology, centered on questions of equality, justice and the defense of minorities, sometimes perceived as prejudicial to republican universalism”. This current of thought had also entered the latest version of Robert, at the end of 2021. Separatism (“willingness of a minority, generally religious, to place its own laws above national legislation”), the invisibilization or fatphobia have also been adopted.
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Olivier Rousteing and Thierry Marx consecrated
As for two years, the Covid-19 pandemic remains an important provider of new terms. At least seven terms will appear in the next dictionary: “Covid long”, “vaccination pass”, “sanitary”, “vaccinodrome”, but also “essential trade”. Still on the health level, the two antagonistic discourses – “enclosure” and “reassurance” – about public health measures are included in this reference dictionary.
Some foreign terms will also be included. Among them, Cypriot cheese, halloumi, will rub shoulders with konjac (Japanese plant), kakapo (New Zealand parrot), chick lit (literature for young women in English), tomte (Swedish leprechaun) or yodel (singing technique from the German-speaking Alps).
As for proper names, the Larousse honors designer Olivier Rousteing, dancer Misty Copeland, cook Thierry Marx and Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Maria Angelita Ressa. In 2022, the Larousse will celebrate its 170th anniversary. It refers to France, with the Robert. It will be published on June 15 and will thus have more than 64,000 words and around 28,000 proper names.
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