Purity of Language? Purity of the Dictionary? (from the History of "Explanatory Dictionary of Russian" Under the Editorship of D.N. Ushakov)

Abstract

The article is devoted to one of important aspects of the soviet language policy – formation of the myth about so-called “purity of language”. Critical reaction of the press to the first volume of “The explanatory dictionary of Russian” under the editorship of D.N. Ushakov brightly shows participation of mass media of the 1930th in creation of an image of the ideal language exempted from vulgarisms, dialecticisms, jargons, special lexicon. The author finds some reflections of “purity of language” in modern public consciousness.

Keywords

• language policy, "purity of language", lexicography, explanatory dictionary of russian, mass media