Problems of defining selected types of editions (A contribution to the terminology of textual studies)

Abstract

The term “scientific edition” is used in a host of different ways and is often understood as a synonym or partial synonym for “academic edition” or “critical edition.” Critical edition is also understood differently in different contexts – either broadly (as a critically edited text with a commentary) or narrowly (as a scientific edition with an extensive commentary). As a result of the emergence of digital media, new impulses for redefining the term “scientific edition” have been brought about by the digital humanities. The article aims at providing a general definition of the scientific edition for print and digital editions and tackles the issue of terminological ambiguity concerning the scientific and critical edition. This vagueness can be observed on the permeability of the boundaries of the given classes in the direction of certain types of editions (documentary and reading edition). Taking into consideration the specific requirements made on digital scientific editions, the article analyses the used terminology and proposes to employ the term “edition on digital medium” for digital editions, digitalised print editions, and editions which were designed for the electronic medium, but did not take the requirements given by the digital paradigm into account.

Keywords

• scientific edition
• critical edition
• documentary edition
• reading edition
• digital edition
• digital medium