A Survey of the Dictionary Use of Gabonese Students at Two South African Universities

Abstract

Abstract: This article presents a preliminary study on Gabonese users' knowledge, opinions, attitudes and habits of the use of dictionaries, and their dictionary culture. It is based on the principle that the lexicographer should know the target users and their needs (Householder and Saporta 1962: 279). The aim of the article is to present and discuss research findings of a lexicographic survey conducted among 100 Gabonese students at the University of Stellenbosch and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology with regard to dictionary use and culture. In this article, we discuss the objective of the research, the research subjects, the research methods, the research coverage, the research findings, the description and the critical analysis of the data.

Keywords: SURVEY, QUESTIONNAIRE, GABONESE USERS, DICTIONARY CULTURE, NEEDS