Íslenskt mál og almenn málfræði - 01.01.2000, Page 94

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Flugur, smágreinar og umrœðuefni
By using tools like indices Jón could not only have spared himself
a lot of tedious work, but he could also have quantified his results, or
where he already did quantify them, have obtained more precise
results. In a few other respects the article could also have been
improved upon without demanding more time. The main purpose of
the following comments is to point out some of the tools that Jón
could have used, give some indication of the reliability of his counts
and point out possible improvements of the study. I will first discuss
the choice of texts and the choice of editions, then mention some
available tools, discuss the presentation of the results, and finally add
some supplementary counts of my own.
2. Choice of texts and editions
2.1 Choice oftexts
In a study of this type the first problem is to decide which texts to use.
When dealing with a limited period (and written language only) one
could in theory take all texts from that period, but this is not only not
easily done, but also in many cases quite unnecessary. A sample will
usually do, but it needs to be taken with care, dividing the period to be
researched into parts and choosing about equal amounts of text for
each part. Text samples for each period should cover different genres.
If great differences are found within a single text sample or between
two chronologically adjacent samples, it might be necessary to in-
clude more source material for that period (or those periods).
Although a wide range of texts has been used, this methodological
aspect is not discussed, nor are the texts shown in a chronological
order. The great majority of the source texts listed belong to the Old
Icelandic period.
2.2 Choice of edition
Texts from the Old Icelandic period are often found in more than one
manuscript, sometimes centuries apart in time. Especially such inno-
cent expressions as the ones with mót dealt with in the article under
discussion will often be adapted by a copiist to a form usual at his own