un petit sursee?

[darkoshi]

What is a Sercy? - That's what I wondered the first time I heard the word used, by someone at work. I was also mightily curious as to how it was spelled. But apparently it's not in any dictionary, and so there is no standard, official spelling of the word. Imagine that! Apparently its use is limited to a small geographic area centered in this very town! Since then, I've heard it used by a few more people at work, and have discovered that Qiao is familiar with the word too.

Comments

[davidbr1.livejournal.com]

The compilers of dictionaries do tend to be somewhat reluctant to include slang.
The inhabitants of Liverpool sometimes use the word ‘woolyback’ as a derogatory term in reference to someone from St Helens (my home town). Somehow I can’t see that ever being included in the Oxford English Dictionary.

[darkoshi]

I think it mainly depends on how widespread the usage is, and whether the usage has persisted over a period of time, as to whether dictionaries choose to include the word. Even if a word is considered derogatory, it is useful for someone to be able to look it up in a dictionary. Otherwise people who are unfamiliar with the word would have no easy way of learning its history and negative connotations.

Regional/dialectical dictionaries are good for documenting these kinds of words that aren't widespread.