Duden


The Duden is a dictionary of the German language, first published by Konrad Duden in 1880. The Duden is updated regularly with new editions appearing every four or five years., it is in its 27th edition. It is printed as twelve volumes, with each volume covering different aspects of the German language such as loanwords, etymology, pronunciation, synonyms, etc.
The first of these volumes, Die deutsche Rechtschreibung, has long been the prescriptive source for German language spelling. The Duden has become the preeminent language resource of the German language, stating the definitive set of rules regarding grammar, spelling and use of German language.

History

Konrad Duden

In 1872, Konrad Duden, headmaster of a Gymnasium in Schleiz, now in Thuringia, published a German dictionary called the Schleizer Duden, the first Duden. In 1880, he published the Vollständiges Orthographisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache ; this seminal treatise was declared the official source for correct spelling in the administration of Prussia the same year. The first edition of the Duden contained 28,000 entries.

From 1901 to 1996

In 1902, the Bundesrat confirmed the Duden as the official standard for German spelling; Austria-Hungary and Switzerland soon followed suit. In the ensuing decades, the Duden continued to be the de facto standard for German orthography. After World War II this tradition continued separately in East and West Germany in Leipzig and Mannheim, respectively.
In West Germany, some publishing houses began to attack the Duden "monopoly" in the 1950s, publishing dictionaries which contained alternative spellings. In reaction, in November 1955 the ministers of culture of the states of Germany confirmed the spellings given by the Duden would continue to be the official standard.

East German Duden (Leipzig)

Reform Duden

On the cover of the Duden, 25th Edition, Volume 1, these words are printed in red letters: Das umfassende Standardwerk auf der Grundlage der aktuellen amtlichen Regeln. This translates as: "The comprehensive standard reference based on the current official rules."
The "current official rules" are the result of the German orthography reform of 1996.

Volumes

  1. Die deutsche Rechtschreibung – The Spelling Dictionary
  2. Das Stilwörterbuch – The Dictionary of Style
  3. Das Bildwörterbuch – The Pictorial Dictionary
  4. Die Grammatik – The Grammar
  5. Das Fremdwörterbuch – The Dictionary of Foreign Words
  6. Das Aussprachewörterbuch – The Pronouncing Dictionary
  7. Das Herkunftswörterbuch – The Etymological Dictionary
  8. Das Synonymwörterbuch – The Thesaurus
  9. Richtiges und gutes Deutsch – Correct and Good German
  10. Das Bedeutungswörterbuch – The Dictionary
  11. Redewendungen – Figures of Speech
  12. Zitate und Aussprüche – Quotations and Sayings

    Literature