English-Esperanto Dictionary
English-Esperanto Dictionary, compiled by J. C. O'Connor, is the first dictionary of its kind, rushed into print to meet pressing demand from English speakers around the world eager to learn Esperanto. Within its pages, the busy reader finds every ordinary English word paired with its Esperanto equivalent, with special care taken to include the most commonly used terms. Beyond the word lists, it lays out the building blocks of the language itself—prefixes, suffixes, and the simple grammatical endings that mark each part of speech—so that the student of word-building can extend its material almost without limit.
More than a reference, the book is a labour of devotion to a young international language and its founder, Dr. Zamenhof. It reflects the early Esperanto movement's hope that a shared, easily learned tongue might draw the world closer together. Its emphasis on a small core vocabulary and rational word-formation captures Esperanto's central promise: that ordinary people, with modest effort, can communicate across the barriers of nation and mother tongue.
How it begins
In response to numerous requests from almost every country in which English is spoken, we have much pleasure in presenting to the public this the first English-Esperanto Dictionary. The demands for such a work became so pressing that it was absolutely necessary to issue it as quickly as possible. Were it not for this urgency we would have waited until the larger Dictionary was ready, but the knowledge that the progress of Esperanto would be materially checked or retarded decided us to issue this smaller one. The compiling of a Dictionary is always a difficult task, but the difficulty is increased in a very great degree when an initial and original work is undertaken. Such a work demands careful and thorough research, absolute precision, and much patient labour. The labour, however, has been lightened by the good wishes of Esperantists all the world over. Not from England alone, but from that Greater Britain beyond the seas, kindly help has been offered, and gratefully accepted. We have spared no pains in the endeavour to make this Dictionary (within its limits) perfect, and we hope we have succeeded. The busy Briton, who has not time for word-building, will find within the following pages every ordinary English word, with its Esperanto equivalent.
Text from Project Gutenberg, public domain.