Feminist Chronicles of Forgotten Voices: Exploring Female Lexicograpghy, Gendered Language and Friendship in Pip Wiliams’ the Dictionary of Lost Words

This article examines Pip Williams’ The Dictionary of Lost Words (2021) as both a literary narrative and a feminist intervention in the history of lexicography. By fictionalizing the creation of The Oxford English Dictionary (OED), the novel exposes how cultural norms, patriarchal authority, and editorial decisions shaped the inclusion and omission of words, particularly those tied to women’s lives and experiences. Focusing on Esme Nicoll’s journey to preserve “lost words,” the analysis highlights the novel’s engagement with questions of memory, marginalization, and the symbolic power of language.

Alongside literary interpretation, the article situates Williams’ work within the overlooked contributions of real female lexicographers such as Hester Thrale Piozzi, Ann Fisher, and Edith Thompson. Their intellectual labor, often erased or overshadowed, provides crucial historical context for understanding the novel’s feminist politics. The study argues that Williams’ narrative functions as a form of linguistic activism: reclaiming silenced voices, foregrounding women’s solidarity, and challenging the male-dominated historiography of language. By interweaving fiction, history, and feminist critique, the article demonstrates how literature can illuminate the political stakes of lexicography and the enduring struggle for gendered recognition in language.