"Isichazamazwi SesiNdebele" as reflector of the moral and ideological values of society

Abstract

Isichazamazwi SesiNdebele (henceforth the ISN) reflect the moral and ideological val-ues of society. This article analyses the ISN as reflector of the moral and ideological values of the Ndebele society. The ISN highlights fundamental beliefs and ideas of the Ndebele people. The study stems from the observation that the culture of a people will always reflect in a dictionary as culture and language are inextricably intertwined. The aim of this article is to discuss the ways in which the ISN reflects the moral and ideological values of society. The article examines how the society in which the dictionary was created influenced the choice of lemmas and the phrasing of definitions. The focus is on sexist definitions, terms referring to ethnic groups and the treatment of taboo words and religious terms. These terms denote cultural attitudes harboured by the Ndebele society. The article discusses how the treatment of these terms reflects on the values prevalent in the culture of the Ndebele community.

Keywords: monolingual dictionary, definitions, language, culture, taboo words, ideological values, sexist attitudes