Johnson as a Lexicographer: Getting His Just Deserts—Bryan A. Garner

drjohnsonshouse
Feb 18
2 min read

Updated: Aug 27

Close-up photograph of the spines of antique leather-bound books, prominently featuring two volumes of Johnson’s Dictionary with ornate gold tooling and black title labels. The aged leather shows wear and texture, evoking a sense of historical richness and scholarly tradition.

A talk by Bryan A. Garner Monday 15 September

6pm - 8pm

£25

Was Johnson truly the father of the English dictionary? Bryan A. Garner explores the evidence in this thought-provoking talk.

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Samuel Johnson is often credited as the first English-language lexicographer, or more broadly as “the father of the English dictionary.” But was he? At least 25 people preceded him in making English-language dictionaries. What, exactly, were Johnson’s innovations? Among the 14 possible advances in dictionary-making, Garner will show that in fact Johnson can be credited with only 2—possibly 3. But they were important innovations, and lexicography would never be the same once Johnson introduced them. Garner will demonstrate just why Johnson merits all the accolades he has received.

The first 30 people to book will receive, at no additional charge, a copy of Garner’s book on the history of English lexicography: Hardly Harmless Drudgery (2024), co-authored with Jack Lynch (retail value £50).

A man in a dark suit and striped tie sits in front of a bookshelf filled with legal volumes. He is smiling slightly while holding an open book, angled toward the camera, with one hand resting on the page.

Bryan A. Garner

Bryan A. Garner, chief editor of the past six editions of Black's Law Dictionary, has worked as a lexicographer for over four decades. He is the author of Garner's Modern English Usage (5th ed., OUP) and of more than 25 other language-related books. Author of the grammar-and-usage chapter of The Chicago Manual of Style, he has been called the "Herakles of English Usage" (New Yorker, 2021). He is the most frequently cited scholar in American law, with more than 55,000 judicial opinions citing or quoting his work. His library collection holds more than 5,000 dictionaries and grammars, including incunables dating to 1474, not to mention original documents handwritten by Dr. Johnson himself.

Limited capacity. Early booking advised. A small number of priority tickets have been set aside for members.

Accessibility

There is regrettably no step-free access to Dr Johnson's House.

There are seven steps to access the entrance (with a handrail).

The building is a four-storey townhouse with a staircase between each floor.

There are handrails on each side of the staircase and visitor seating in every room.

Toilets are located down a steep set of stairs.