Henry Cockeram's English Dictionarie
Poets involved
What happened
In 1623, Henry Cockeram published The English Dictionarie, or an Interpreter of Hard English Words in London, the third monolingual English dictionary after Cawdrey's and Bullokar's. This work was notable for its practical, user-friendly format and its inclusion of 'vulgar' words, making it accessible to a broad audience including women and merchants. It built on the tradition of explaining difficult vocabulary and expanded the scope of English lexicography.
Literary impact
Cockeram's dictionary democratized access to English literature by providing definitions for a wide range of words, enabling readers from all social classes to understand the poetry and prose of the period. Its inclusion of vulgar terms reflected the growing interest in the living language, a trend that would later influence poets like Robert Herrick and John Milton. The dictionary's popularity helped to standardize English spelling and usage.
Source: Wikipedia
