English Flour and Italian Bran : Johnson's Dictionary and the Reformation of Italian Lexicography in the Early Nineteenth Century

The essay deals with the reception and use of Samuel Johnson''s Dictionary in Italy by both the members of the Florentine Accademia della Crusca and their Italian opponents and critics. In fact, the Cruscanti had the Preface to Johnson''s Dictionary translated into Italian in 1813 as part of an unsuccessful attempt to start a new edition of the Vocabolario. On the other hand, in 1819, the Piedmontese lexicographer and critic Giuseppe Grassi reviewed Johnson''s Dictionary in order to expose the shortcomings of the Vocabolario and to undermine its century-old authority. The essay thus contributes a few interesting insights into early modern European dictionary-making and, more particularly, into a neglected chapter in the history of Anglo-Italian relations.