One mainstay of the Boasian tradition in anthropological
linguistics is the notion that adequate documentation of
a language must consist of at least three volumes: a grammar,
a dictionary, and a collection of texts. This convention
grew out of Boas's dogged insistence on the collection
of copious texts in the native languages as a way of documenting
the cultures of Native North Americans, which he believed
were breaking down and disappearing. Obviously, if one
were actually to make use of such texts, a grammar and
a dictionary were also needed; so this practice of a necessary
trilogy was established, a tradition that has continued
in academic departments which carry on the Boasian heritage
(illustrated by the postgraduate work and resulting publications
of the editor of this journal).
