48. évfolyam, 2002. 3. szám
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Hungarian

Librarianship and linguistics: some thoughts on the relationship of these two disciplines

KOLTAY Tibor

Könyvtári Figyelő (Library Review) New Series 12. (Vol. 48.) No. 3. 2002. pp. 429 – 440.

It can hardly be denied that linguistics belongs to the disciplines related to librarianship. It is amazing, however, that in spite of the relations between linguistics and librarianship, bibliometric surveys suggest that linguistics had a minor impact on librarianship, and these relations were limited mainly to the computerized processing of texts, that had been and still is in the focus of interest. The article seeks an answer to the question whether there is really so little relationship between the two disciplines. Computerized text processing and many other fields of linguistics related to libraries and librarianship belong to the sphere of applied linguistics. Applied linguistics can be defined as a use of linguistic theories, methods, and ideas for satisfying some social need. The interest in information and communication, including the relevance of mathematical information theory belong to the common features of librarianship and (modern) linguistics. Communicative linguistics also makes a distinction

between primary and secondary messages. There is much similarity between the interdisciplinary relations of modern linguistics and librarianship. Subject processing plays a distinguished role in the meeting point of librarianship and linguistics.

A part of librarianship - first of all subject processing - means the understanding, and interpreting of the content of texts, and the formulation of surrogates representing them. However, it is not the same as content analysis, though it has to be taken into account, when it offers more than a quantitative approach to texts. Text and textology is important for librarianship as well. Semiotic textology offers a framework taking the rich interdisciplinary relationship of texts into account. The article depicts informativity and intertextuality from

among the characteristics of textuality. It also deals with the role of psycholinguistics and cognitive linguistics in detail, highlighting their possibleadditions to librarianship.

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