Language Catalogue

I collect language guides and grammars! This is a catalogue of my collection so far. There are still a lot of languages I don't have books for that I'd like to find - any wishlist languages are marked in red.

I'm limited not only in budget and location (what I can find in my local charity shops) but also in the politics of language books - not every language will have a phrasebook or grammar written for it, especially if it's a language spoken by indigenous people or used in a country that isn't a popular tourist destination. There's a lot to think about even when you do come across a book for a "less popular" language: who wrote this? Why? I was really excited to find my Hawaiian dictionary because it was actually written by a native Hawaiian scholars and not a racist white minister like my Xhosa phrasebook.

Anyway, this page is under construction.

General language-related books
  • 1000 Languages: the Worldwide History of Living and Lost Tongues by Peter K. Austin (2008)
  • Alpha Beta: How Our Alphabet Shaped the Modern World by John Man (2009)
  • Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language by Gretchen McCulloch (2019)
  • Chomsky for Beginners by David Cogswell & Paul Gordon (1996)
  • Dictionary of Languages: the Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages by Andrew Dalby (2004)
  • Empires of the World: a Language History of the World by Nicholas Ostler (2006)
  • From Elvish to Klingon: Exploring Invented Languages by Michael Adams (2011)
  • The Horologicon: a Day's Jaunt Through the Lost Words of the English Language by Mark Forsyth (2016)
  • How Language Works by David Crystal (2007)
  • In the Land of Invented Languages: Adventures in Linguistic Creativity, Madness, and Genius by Arika Okrent (2009)
  • Introducing Linguistics: a Graphic Guide by R. L. Trask & Bill Mayblin (2012)
  • Just My Type: a Book about Fonts by Simon Garfield (2010)
  • The Language Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder (2010)
  • The Language Lover's Puzzle Book: Lexical Perplexities and Cracking Conundrums from across the Globe by Alex Bellos (2020)
  • Language: the Cultural Tool by Daniel Everett (2013)
  • Language Myths by Laurie Bauer & Peter Trudgill (1998)
  • Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages by Guy Deutscher (2011)
  • The Unfolding of Language: the Evolution of Mankind's Greatest Invention by Guy Deutscher (2005)
  • Why is Q Always Followed by U?: Word-Perfect Answers to the Most-Asked Questions About Language by Michael Quinion (2010)
  • Writing: the Story of Alphabets and Scripts by Georges Jean (1987)
Ainu
Afrikaans
American Sign Language
  • Signing Made Easy: A complete program for learning and using sign language in everyday life by Rod R. Butterworth & Mickey Flodin (1989)
Anglo-Saxon
  • Sweet's Anglo-Saxon Primer by Norman Davis (1996)
Arabic
  • Alif Baa with Multimedia: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds by Kristen Brustad, Mahmoud Al-Batal, & Abbas Al-Tonsi (2004)
  • Arabic Calligraphy: Naskh script for beginners by Mustafa Ja'far (2009)
  • Arabic Grammar of the Written Language by Rev. G. W. Thatcher (1942)
  • Gateway to Arabic by Dr. Imran Hamza Alawiye (2007)
  • Get By in Arabic: a Quick Beginner's Course for Holidaymakers and Business People from BBC Books (1989)
  • Mastering Arabic Script: a guide to handwriting by Jane Wightwick & Mahmoud Gaafar (2005)
  • Moroccan Arabic Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (1999)
  • Noorani Qaaidah: a Gift for Proper Learning & Teaching Holy Qur'an Specially for Children from Darul Kutub (?)
  • Dictionary of English, Baluchi, and Omani Arabic by William Foxton (1980)
Baluchi
  • Dictionary of English, Baluchi, and Omani Arabic by William Foxton (1980)
Basque
Bengali
  • Hindi, Urdu & Bengali from Lonely Planet (2011)
Belarusian
Blissymbols
Breton
British Sign Language
Bulgarian
Burmese
  • Burmese Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2008)
Cambodian
  • Colloquial Cambodian: a Complete Language Course by David Smyth (1995)
Chinese (Cantonese & Mandarin)
  • 15 Minute Mandarin Chinese: Learn in Just 12 Weeks by Ma Cheng (2018)
  • Chinese Calligraphy made easy: a structured course in creating beautiful brush lettering by Rebecca Yue (2004)
  • The Chinese Classrom Book 2 by Hua Cai (2008)
  • Chinese Radicals Volume 1 by Tan Huay Peng (1986)
  • Easy Peasy Chinese: Mandarin Chinese for Beginners by Elinor Greenwood (2007)
  • Easy Peasy Chinese Workbook: Mandarin Chinese practice for beginners by Elinor Greenwood (2015)
  • Get By in Chinese from BBC Books (1995)
  • Mandarin Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2006)
  • Mastering Chinese: the complete course for beginners by Catherine Hua Xiang (2010)
  • The Most Basic Chinese - All You Need to Know to Get By by James McGlasson (2012)
  • No Sweat Cantonese: a Fun Guide to Speaking Correctly by Amy Leung (2003)
Catalan
  • Catalan Dictionary & Phrasebook by A. Scott Britton (2015)
Cornish
Croatian
  • Croatian Phrasebook from Collins (2007)
Czech
  • Czech Phrasebook & Dictionary from Berlitz (1993)
  • Czech Phrasebook & Dictionary from Lonely Planet (2013)
  • Teach Yourself Czech from Teach Yourself (1993)
Danish
  • Teach Yourself Danish from Teach Yourself (1958)
Dothraki
  • Living Language: Dothraki by David J. Peterson (2014)
Dutch
  • Compact Woordenboek: Engels-Nederlands & Nederlands Engels by
  • Dutch Dictionary from Teach Yourself (1976)
  • Dutch Phrasefinder from Collins Gem
  • Teach Yourself Dutch from Teach Yourself (1999)
  • Traveller's Dutch by Arthur Eperon (1981)
Egyptian Hieroglyphs
  • How to Read Egyptian Hieroglyphs: a Step-by-Step Guide to Teach Yourself by Mark Collier & Bill Manley (2000)
  • Introducing Egyptian Hieroglpyhs by Barbara Watterson (1981)
  • More about Egyptian Hieroglpyhs by Barbara Watterson (1985)
English
  • Anglais: la grammaire from Bescherelle (2008) [French]
  • Angliyskiy yazyk: Kratkiy spravochnik by G. P. Shalaeva (2009) [Russian]
  • The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language by David Crystal (2009)
  • Collins Children's Dictionary: thousands of words clearly defined, colour illustrations throughout from Collins (1978)
  • Help Your Kids with English: a Unique Step-by-Step Visual Guide by Carol Vorderman (2013)
  • Holmes' Comprehensive English Grammar for Senior Classes in Primary Schools Part III from W. & R. Holmes (1950s?)
  • Immediate Modern English Letter by C. P. Cheung (1990) [Chinese]
  • Modern English Conversation for Beginners from Sino-Anglo Publishing Co.? (1990?) [Chinese]
  • Modern English Pronunciation Practice by M. D. Munro Mackenzie (1967)
  • Notes on Learning English by Ralph Cooke (1960)
  • The Prodigal Tongue: the Love-Hate Relationship Between British & American English by Lynne Murphy (2019)
  • Slikovni rječnik Engleski from Compact (2011) [Croatian]
Esperanto
  • A Complete Grammar of Esperanto by Ivy Kellerman (2008)
  • The "Edinburgh" Esperanto Pocket Dictionary from Thomas Nelson & Sons Ltd (1944)
  • Esperanto-English & English-Esperanto Dictionary & Phrasebook by J. F. Conroy (1999)
Estonian
  • Baltic Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2001)
Faroese
Farsi
  • Farsi (Persian) Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2001)
Finnish
  • Teach Yourself Finnish from Teach Yourself (2003)
Flemish
  • I Want to Become a Doctor - Ik wil doktor worden: English-Flemish (Belgian) Children's Bilingual Picture Dictionary by Richard & Suzanne Carlson (2020)
French
  • Essential French for Kids: Phrases Teacher Never Told You by AA Publishing (2000)
  • French for Travellers from Berlitz (1982)
  • The French Travelmate from Lexus (1984)
  • Get By in French: a Quick Beginners' Course for Holidaymakers & Business People from BBC Books (1992)
  • The Glossary of French and English Management Terms by James Coveney & Sheila J. Moore (1979)
  • The Never Not Nothing No More Book from E. J. Arnold & Son Ltd (1973)
  • The Ski-Mate: French, German, Italian by Iseabail Macleod (1982)
  • Sky My Husband! Ciel Mon Mari! by Jean-Loup Chiflet (1987) [French]
  • Toute la grammaire by Bénédicted Gaillard & Jean-Pierre Colignon (2005) [French]
  • The Usborne First Thousand Words in French by Heather Amery & Stephen Cartwright (1990s?)
  • Vocabulary of Iron and Steel Terms from British Steel (1971)
Gaelic (Scottish)
  • Elementary Course of Gaelic by Duncan Reid (1951)
  • Everyday Gaelic by Morag MacNeill (2006)
  • Gaelic Dictionary by Malcom MacLennan (1991)
  • Gaelic-English & English-Gaelic Dictionary from Lomond Books
  • Gaelic is Fun! by Colm Ó Baoill (1989)
  • Gaelic Learners Handbook by Ruaraidh MacThómais (1976)
  • Gaelic Verbs: Systemised and Simplified by Colin Mark (2013)
  • Gaelic Without Groans by John Mackechnie (1970)
  • Scottish Gaelic in Twelve Weeks by Roibeard Ó Maolalaigh (2018)
  • The Pocket Guide to Scottish Words by Iseabail Macleod (1986)
  • The Tourist's Hand-book of Gaelic and English Phrases for the Highllands by Mrs Mary Mackellar (2009)
  • What's in a Scottish Placename? by Peter Terrell (2021)
German
  • German: Language Survival Guide from Collins (2001)
  • German Visual Phrase Book from Eyewitness Travel Guides (2008)
  • Get By in German: a Quick Beginners' Course for Holidaymakers and Business People from BBC Books (1987)
  • Grammaire Allemande by Emile Sigwault & Ch Bauer (1891) [French]
  • Newnes German-English, English-German Dictionary from Newnes(1952)
  • The Ski-Mate: French, German, Italian by Iseabail Macleod (1982)
Greek
  • Essential Greek Phrase Book from AA Publishing (2002)
  • First Steps in Greek by F. Ritchie (1955)
  • Greece: a Hugo Phrase Book from Hugo's Language Books (1982)
  • Greek for Travellers from Berlitz (1982)
  • Greek Phrase Book from Penguin Books (1973)
Hawaiian
  • Illustrated Hawaiian Dictionary by Kahikāhealani Wight & Robin Yoko Racoma (2007)
Hebrew
Hindi
  • Hindi, Urdu & Bengali from Lonely Planet (2011)
Icelandic
  • Fast Talk Icelandic from Lonely Planet (2018)
Igbo
Inuktitut
Irish
  • Foclóir Scoile: English-Irish, Irish-English Dictionary from An Gúm (2006)
  • Motherfoclóir: Dispatches from a not so dead language by Darach Ó Seaghdha (2017)
  • Usborne Language Guides: Irish for Beginners by Angela Wilkes & John Shackell (1989)
Italian
  • Italian Phrase Book from Penguin Books (1988)
  • The Ski-Mate: French, German, Italian by Iseabail Macleod (1982)
  • Teach Yourself Quick and Easy Italian from Teach Yourself (1986)
Japanese
  • Star Wars: English-Japanese Dictionary for Jedi Knights from Gakken (2015) [Japanese]
  • Essential Japanese from Berlitz (2009)
  • Essential Kanji by P. G. O'Neill (1988)
  • The Handbook of Japanese Verbs by Taeko Kamiya (2001)
  • Instant Immersion Japanese by Meghan Barstow (2003)
  • Japanese at a Glance: Phrase Book & Dictionary for Travellers by Nobuo Akiyama (2006)
  • Japanese for Busy People I from Association for Japanese-Language Teaching (2011)
  • Japanese for Busy People II from Association for Japanese-Language Teaching (2011)
  • Japanese for Busy People III from Association for Japanese-Language Teaching (2012)
  • Japanese Grammar by Keiko Uesawa Chevray & Tomiko Kuwahira (2004)
  • The Japanese Language by Haruhiko Kindaichi (2010)
  • Japanese Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (1998)
  • Japanese Step by Step: an Innovative Approach to Speaking and Reading Japanese by Gene Nishi (2001)
  • Japanese Vocabulary by Shigeru Eguchi & Orie Yamada (2001)
  • Learn 162 Kanji with Hai!ku by Charlotte Martin & Lewis Plowman (2020)
  • Let's Learn Hiragana: First Book of Basic Japanese Writing by Yasuko Kosaka Mitamura (1985)
  • New Penguin Paralelle Text: Short Stories in Japanese by Michael Emmerich (2011)
  • Power Up Your Kanji: 800 Basic Kanji as a Gateway to Advanced Japanese by Mayumi Oka (2009?)
  • Takahashi's Pocket Romanized English-Japanese Dictionary by
  • Teach Yourself Business Japanese from Teach Yourself (1992)
  • The Usborne First Thousand Words in Japanese by Heather Amery & Stephen Cartwright (1990s?)
Klingon
  • How to Speak Klingon: Essential Phrases for the Intergalactic Traveler by Ben Grossblatt & Alex Fine (2013)
  • The Klingon Dictionary by Marc Okrand (1992)
Korean
  • Gateway to Speaking Korean: Practical Text for Foreigners from The Association of Foreign Language Propagation (1996)
  • Korean Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2002)
Latin
  • Hugo's Latin in Three Months from Hugo's Language Institute (1970s?)
  • Kennedy's Revised Latin Primer by Sir James Mountford (2010)
  • Latin Grammar by James Morwood (1999)
  • A Latin Word List by K. C. Masterman (1971)
  • Teach Yourself Latin from Teach Yourself (1986)
  • The Usbrone First Thousand Words in Latin by Heather Amery & Stephen Cartwright (2007)
  • Usborne Internet-Linked Latin for Beginners by Angela Wilkes & John Shackell (2001)
Latvian
  • Baltic Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2001)
Lithuanian
  • Baltic Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2001)
Lojban
Luxembourgish
Malay
  • Malay Phrase Book for Tourists by HJ Ismail Ahmad & Andrew Leonki (1991)
Maltese
  • Pocket Dictionary and Phrase Book: English-Maltese by Capt. Paul Bugeja (2004)
Manx
Māori
  • Instant! Māori by Nick Theobald & Pāora Walker (2006)
Maya Glyphs
  • Reading the Maya Glyphs by Michael D. Coe & Mark van Stone (2020)
Na'vi
  • The Easiest Way to Learn Na'vi EVER!! by Dusty White (2011)
Norwegian
  • Hugo's Norwegian in Three Months from Hugo's Language Institute (1970s?)
Old Norse
  • A New Introduction to Old Norse Part I: Grammar by Michael Barnes (2008)
  • A New Introduction to Old Norse Part II: Reader by Anthony Faulkes (2011)
  • Viking Language 1: Learn Old Norse, Runes, and Icelandic Sagas by Jesse L. Byock (2017)
  • Viking Language 2: The Old Norse Reader by Jesse L. Byock (2015)
Polish
  • Polish Phrase Book & Dictionary from Berlitz (2003)
Portuguese
  • Brazilian Portuguese Phrasebook & Dictionary from Lonely Planet (2014)
  • Portuguese Phrase Book & Dictionary from BBC Active (2007)
  • Teach Yourself Portuguese from Teach Yourself (2003)
Punjabi
Quechua
  • Quechua Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (1989)
Romani
Romanian
  • Romanian Phrase Book & Dictionary from Berlitz (1994)
Russian
  • The Penguin Russian Course by J. L. I. Fennell (1963)
  • Russian Phrase Book from Collins (1968)
  • Russian Script Hacking for Beginners by Judith Meyer (2019)
Saami
Samoa
Scots
  • The Old Scots Tongue: 10,000 Scottish words and their meanings by Cleishbothan the Younger (1858)
  • The Pocket Guide to Scottish Words by Iseabail Macleod (1986)
Serbian
Sinhala
  • Sinhala Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2008)
Spanish
  • 15 Minute Spanish: Learn in Just 12 Weeks by Anna Bremon (2012)
  • Beginner's Spanish: an introduction to conversational Spanish by Terry Wilson (1983)
  • Usborne Internet-Linked Spanish for Beginners by Angela Wilkes & John Shackell (2001)
  • Spanish: Language Survival Guide from Collins (2001)
Swahili
  • Swahili for Travellers from Berlitz (1982)
  • Swahili Sayings 1: erevuka na yaliyomo by S. S. Farsi (2003)
Swedish
  • Sohlman Conversation Guide by Waldemar J. Adams (1947)
  • Fast Talk Swedish from Lonely Planet (2018)
Tagalog
  • Survival Tagalog by Joi Barrios (2016)
Thai
  • Guide to Thai Conversation by Dr. Parichart Jumsai (2000)
  • Thai Phrase Book from Eyewitness Travel Guides (2003)
  • Thai Phrasebook from Lonely Planet (2004)
Tibetan
  • Tibetan Phrasebook & Dictionary from Lonely Planet (2020)
Tolkien's languages (Sindarin, Quenya, Khuzdul)
Tok Pisin
Toki Pona
Tongan
Turkish
  • Essential Turkish Phrase Book from AA Publishing (2003)
  • Get By in Turkish: a Quick Beginners' Course for Holidaymakers and Business People from BBC Books (1989)
Ukranian
Urdu
  • Get By in Hindi & Urdu: a Quick Beginners' Course for Work or Travel from BBC Books (1989)
  • Hindi, Urdu & Bengali from Lonely Planet (2011)
Vietnamese
Volapuk
Welsh
  • Geirfa a Chystrawennau Cymraeg by D. Brown (1973) [Welsh]
  • Welcome to Welsh by Heini Gruffudd (2017)
  • Welsh Pocket Dictionary from Collins (1995)
Xhosa
  • Xhosa Phrase Book by James Stewart (1906)
Yiddish
Yoruba
Zulu
  • Learn Zulu by C. L. S. Nyembezi (1994)

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