Döhne (Rev. J. L.)

A ZULU-K***R DICTIONARY

Etymologically Explained, with Copious Illustrations and Examples. Preceded by an introduction on the Zulu-Kafir language

Published: Printed at G.J. Pike, Cape Town, 1857

Stock Number: 13319

Price: R2,000

First edition: 417 pages, recent half brown morocco gilt, brown cloth sides, with the original printed paper wrappers bound in, errata slip opposite the title page, uncut edges, 8vo (230 x 150 mm), a very good copy.

Published in 1857, Döhne's dictionary represents the first substantial Zulu–English dictionary and remains one of the earliest systematic attempts to codify the Zulu language in print. As a German missionary of the Berlin Missionary Society working in Natal, Döhne brought a rigorous philological approach to the language, explaining words etymologically and providing extensive illustrative examples drawn from spoken usage. The work predates and influenced later standard references, and its introductory essay on the structure and grammar of Zulu (then commonly called "Kafir" or "isiKafir" in colonial literature) provided an essential framework for subsequent missionaries, traders, and colonial officials. Because of its early date, relative accuracy, and depth of documentation, it is indispensable for historical linguists studying the development of isiZulu and for bibliographers of African languages. Mendelssohn (Sidney) South African Bibliography, volume 1, page 476: By far the most comprehensive work of this description issued up to this period. The author was engaged in the compilation whilst pursuing his missionary labours in Kaffraria and Natal, over a period of about twenty years.