Abbreviations in the German, French, And Italian Literature - Advances

Abbreviations in the German, French, And Italian Literature HENRY FISCHBACH

Downloaded by TUFTS UNIV on November 29, 2016 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: June 17, 1954 | doi: 10.1021/ba-1954-0010.ch053

The Language Service, New York, Ν. Y.

The mania for abbreviations has become world-wide, especially in such languages as Russian and German. Abbreviations come in all lengths, sizes, and degrees of unrecognizability and are constantly being changed. The origin and differentiating character istics of abbreviations in German, French, and Italian chemical literature are briefly discussed here, and the underlying principles of their formation are explained, with typical examples and practical suggestions for a general approach to foreign abbreviations.

A b b r e v i a t i o n s , as distinct from symbols, appeared i n man's written record at a com paratively late date. E v e n so, the earliest abbreviations known to us go back to preRoman times, although the Romans were the first to use abbreviations on a fairly large scale. I n the days of the great calligraphic transcriptions, centuries before the advent of printing, when written works had to be copied laboriously by hand, extensive use of abbreviations became a necessity as overworked scribes constantly sought short cuts for long and often-used words. Today, when the desire to compress long scientific terms into briefer spans of space and time is just as strong, although for somewhat different reasons, the mania for abbrevi ations has become a world-wide disease. It is especially chronic i n such languages as Russian and German, where the practice may be condoned as being logically needed by reason of excessively long words and cumbersome endings. A n abbreviation is defined as an arbitrary shortening of a word by cutting off letters from the end. A contraction serves the same purpose, but is understood strictly to be the shortening of a word by cutting out letters from the middle, the omission sometimes being indicated b y an apostrophe. M a n y English and foreign writers hold that a con traction i n which the last letter of the word appears should not be followed b y a period, though an abbreviation should. The National Bureau of Standards, however, recom mends that the period be omitted after all abbreviations of units unless the abbreviation forms an English word, and that the same abbreviation be used for both singular and plural. I n German, French, and Italian, there is a trend to omit the period not only after abbreviations of units, but also after other abbreviations. Usage continues to differ widely, however. German, French, and Italian abbreviations come in all lengths, sizes, and degrees of unrecognizability, and are constantly undergoing change so as to defy standardization and codification. Foreign scientific writers use either what they believe to be " s t a n d a r d " abbreviations or, frequently, go to the trouble of coining new ones, presumably to endear themselves to their space-conscious editors and publishers. The victim is, of course, the reader, especially if the language i n question is not his native tongue. T o make matters worse, abbreviations are perennially in a state of flux, from which they periodically emerge 510

LITERATURE RESOURCES Advances in Chemistry; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1954.

FISCHBACH—ABBREVIATIONS IN

GERMAN, FRENCH, AND

ITALIAN LITERATURE

511


when the public clamor for standardization becomes too great. The cycle starts by ab breviations tending toward increasingly shorter forms as the demand for space saving be comes more pressing. Then, when they have been compressed into one or two letters and have finally become undistinguishable from other, identical-looking, abbreviations representing entirely different and even antonymous words, they are once more lengthened to restore a semblance of intelligability. Like some chemical reactions, this process is reversible at will. M a n y foreign abbreviations are really a form of shorthand which frequently only the author can decipher. They are not necessarily coined on the basis of any uniform system, and that is where the main difficulty lies. This paper does not solve the difficulties en countered in connection with abbreviations used in the German, French, and Italian chemical literature, nor does it cover foreign abbreviations of journal citations or symbols. I t is intended solely to afford an insight into whatever method there is i n the madness, and to draw attention to some of the features to watch for as possible clues. Tables I and I I list many of these abbreviations. Table I.

Abbreviations in the German, French, and Italian Literature M a j o r Types of Abbreviations F I R S T L E T T E R O F W O R D OR W O R D S

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32.

F. H. M. W. 11. wl. swl. h.s.l. h.w.l. k.s.l. k.w.l. D.R.P. I.P.S. a. C.A. c.-à-d. c.g.s. f.e.m. F.O. F.R. p.c.c. p.s. p. de f. SGDG A.B.I. A.F. d. N.d.R. n.n. p.a. p.f. V.M.

Fliesspunkt or Fusionspunkt, melting point Hârte, hardness Masse, mass Wasser, water leichtloslich, readily soluble wenig lôslich, difficultly soluble sehr wenig lôslich, very difficultly soluble heiss sehr lôslich, very soluble hot heiss wenig lôslich, not very soluble hot kalt sehr lôslich, very soluble cold kalt wenig lôslich, not very soluble cold deutsches Reichspatent, G e r m a n state patent indizierte Pferdestàrke, indicated horsepower asymétrique, asymmetrical coefficient d'abaissement, coefficient of freezing point lowering c'est-à-dire, that is to say, i.e. centimètre-gramme-seconde, centimeter-gram-second force électromotrice, electromotive force flamme oxydante, oxidizing flame flamme réductrice, reducing flame pour copie conforme, for true copy poids spécifique, specific gravity point de fusion, melting point Sans Garantie d u Gouvernement, without government guarantee Associazione bibliotecari italiani, Association of Italian L i b r a r i a n s alta frequenza, high frequency destro, right notizia del redattore, editor's note niente di note vole, nothing worthy of note peso atomico, atomic weight punto di fusione, melting point valore medio, average or mean value

33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42.

Abk. blf. Bllg. frbl. Frdl. Gef. P . Kwst. wlôsl. amp. atm.

A b k u r z u n g , abbreviation blàtterfôrmig, i n flakes or leaflets biologische Lôsung, biological solution farblos, colorless Friedlândera Fortschritte der Teerfarbenfabrikation Gefrierpunkt, freezing point Kilowattstunde, kilowatt-hour wasserlôslich, soluble i n water ampère, ampere atmosphère, atmosphere

Two,

T H R E E , OR M O R E L E T T E R S O F W O R D OR W O R D S


A D V A N C E S IN CHEMISTRY SERIES

512


Table I (continued) 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71.

cent, cube cuill. dem. dil. éq. fasc. ind. mol. mn. qqf. 8olv. vap. ac. Batt. calc. cmq. cone. crist ecc. dill. Md. p. eb. Pr. Max. R. Ind. rip. sp. teor. trov. v . per es.

centimètre cube, cubic centimeter cuillerée, spoonful demain, tomorrow dilué, dilute or diluted équivalent, equivalent fascicule, part (of a publication) industrie, industry molécule, molecule minute, minute quelquefois, sometimes dissolvez, dissolve vapeur, vapor (or sometimes, steam) acido, acid batteriologia, bacteriology calcolato, calculated centimetro quadrato, square centimeter concentrato, concentrated cristallizzato, crystallized or crystalline eccetera, et cetera dilluito, dilute or diluted medio or media, medium, media or average punto d i ebollizione, boiling point pressione maxima, maximum pressure reazione indiretta, indirect reaction ripetizione or ripetuto, repetition or repeated sperimentale, experimental del teorico, of theoretical trovato, found vedi per esempio, see e.g. CONTRACTIONS

72. 73. 74. 75. 76. 77.

Eg. fbls. lfd. Lfg. KHz MHz

78. 79. 80. 81. 82.

Pkt. Sg. Tfl. T(h)l. asse

Eisessig, glacial acetic acid farblos, colorless (cf. 36) laufend; current, consecutive Lieferung; delivery, issue Kilohertz, kilocycle(s) per sec. Megahertz, megacycle (s) per sec. P u n k t ; point, period Streckung; stretching, spread Tafel, table T(h)eil, part assurance, insurance

83. 84. 85. 86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 91. 92. 93. 94.

bee bile bté fque gal gtte jer jet pain Pd ppté Xbre

balance, balance bouteille, bottle breveté, patented fabrique, plant or factory général, general goutte, drop Janvier, J a n u a r y juillet, J u l y prochain, next pied, foot précipité, precipitated décembre, December

Several Abbreviations for the Same W o r d or W o r d s 95. 96. 97. 98. 99. 100. 101. 102. 103. 104. 105. 106.

Α., A . G . , A . - G . , At.-Gew. ang., angew. c , ca., cca. F., Fp., F.P. G . T . , Gew. T . L . , L s g . , L o s . , Lôsg. o.dgl., o.drgl., o d . d g l . Pf., P . K . , P S , P.S., Pst. s . G . , sp. G e w . Sm., Sch. P. u.f., u . ff., uff. U/Min., U.p.M., Upm.

107. 108. 109. 110. 111. 112. 113.

b.p., B P , B . P . c h . , c h . v., c h . v a p . P . A . , p. at. P . E . , p. d'éb. P . M . , p. m o l . t.: m., t.p.m. D r . . D t . , Dott.

Atomgewicht, atomic weight angewandt, applied circa, approximately Fusionspunkt, Fliesspunkt; melting point (cf. 104) Gewichtsteil, part b y weight Lôsung, solution oder dergleichen, or the like Pferdekraft, Pferdestàrke; horsepower spezifisches Gewicht, specific weight Schmelzpunkt, melting point (cf. 98) u n d folgende, et seq. or ff. Umdrehungen or Umlaufungen i n der M i n u t e , revolutions per minute (cf. variety of abbreviations i n E n g l i s h : r p m , R P M , r.p.m., R . P . M . ) basse pression, low pressure cheval vapeur, horsepower poids atomique, atomic weight point d'ébullition, boiling point poids moléculaire, molecular weight tours par minute, revolutions per minute Dottore, D o c t o r


FISCHBACH—ABBREVIATIONS IN GERMAN, FRENCH, AND ITALIAN LITERATURE

513

Table I (continued) Same Abbreviations H a v i n g Several M e a n i n g s


SINGLE

114.

A.

115. 116. 117. 118. 119. 120.

B. f. h. H. k. s.

121.

Z.

122.

c.

123. 124. 125. 126.

f. or F . 1. or long. p. or P . t.

A l k o h o l , alcohol; Annalen der Chemie; Atomgewicht, atomic weight; Arbeit, work, task, job, paper, article, investigation Berichte der deutschen chemischen Gesellschaft; B a n d , volume; B l a t t , leaf fest, solid; fein, fine; fur, for; folgende, following hochschmelzend, high-melting; heiss, h o t ; hoch, high or great; heilig, holy Hârte, hardness; Hôhe, altitude or height konstant, constant; kalt, cold siehe, see; symmetrisch, symmetrical; schwer, difficult or heavy; sehr, v e r y ; Sekunde, second (Sekunde is abbreviated as s to differentiate i t from the abbreviation for Stunde, hour, which is S) Zàhigkeit, toughness; Zeitschrift, periodical or j o u r n a l ; Zahl, number; Zeile, line; Zeit, time; Zoll, inch centimetre, centimeter; petite calorie, small calorie; capacité, capacity; contre, versus; courant, current force, force; Fahrenheit; fréquence, frequency; franc; foyer, focal length longueur, length ; longitude, longitude page, page; poids, weight; puissance, power; pression, pressure tonne(s), ton(s) ; tour(s), revolution(s) ; température, temperature

SEVERAL

127.

A.G.

128. 129.

Best. bez.

130. 131.

erw.

132. 133. 134.

fl. gbr. gem.

135. 136.

ges. i.D.

137.

M.G.

138. 139.

Verf. Zus.

ff.

LETTERS

LETTERS

Atomgewicht, atomic weight; Aktiengesellschaft, joint-stock c o m p a n y ; Amtsgericht, local court Bestimmung, determination; Bestellung, order; Bestand, amount, stock beziehungsweise, respectively; bezuglich, with regard t o ; bezogen, referred or relative t o ; bezahlt, paid erwarmt, warmed or heated; erwâhnt, mentioned feinfein, very fine; feuerfest, fireproof or refractory; u n d folgende, et seq. or ff. flllssig, l i q u i d ; fluchtig, volatile gebrâuchlich, usual (ly) ; gebraucht, used; gebrannt, burned. gemein or gemeinsam, common or mutual (ly) ; gemischt, mixed; gemahlen, ground or milled ges&ttigt, saturated; gesetzlich, b y law or legal; gesamt, total i n D a m p f , i n steam ; i n Dampfform, i n vapor form ; i m Durchschnitt, on the average; i m D u n k e l n , i n the dark Molekulargewicht, molecular weight; Massenwirkungsgesetz, law of mass action Verfasser, author; Verfahren, process or method Zusammensetzung, composition; Zusatz, addition

CONTRADICTORY M E A N I N G S

140. 141.

verm. p.

vermehrt, enlarged or increased; vermindert, diminished or reduced pouce, i n c h ; pied, foot Plural Formation

142.

D.D.

143.

F F . , Ff.

144. 145. 146. 147. 148. 149. 150.

SS. AA. GG Fll. Legg. Lsgg. Ndd.

D i c h t e n , densities (cf. D D „ Dampfdichte, vapor density) Fusionspunkte, melting points Sàuren, acids autori, authors giorni, days Flussigkeiten, liquids Legierungen, alloys Losungen, solutions Niederschlàge, precipitates

151. 152. 153. 154. 155. 156. 157. 158. 159. 160. 161.

Rkk. Vbb. Vff. Dtt. Bde. Tie. Gin. frs Mrs pts chx

Reaktionen, reactions Verbindungen, compounds Verfasser, authors D o t t o r i , Doctors B a n d e , volumes Teile, parts Gleichungen, equations francs, francs Messieurs, Messrs. parts, parts chevaux (vapeur), horsepower


ADVANCES IN

514

CHEMISTRY SERIES

Table I (continued) Capitalization i n G e r m a n Abbreviations 162. 163. 164. 165. 166. 167. 168.


169. 170. 171. 172. 173. 174. 175. 176. 177. 178. 179. 180. 181. 182. 183. 184. 185. 186.

dest. Dest.

fl.

Fl. losl. Losl. abh. Abh. ber. Ber. entw. Entw. kl. Kl. m.E. M.E. mBV-Verfahren MBV-Verfahren 8.S.

s.s.

v.T. V.T. a.G. à.W. F.f. m.A.n. u.d.M. G.T. N.D. RV Nd. Sd. Nk. Kp. Ntf. RGT-Regel

destilliert, distilled Destination, distillation flUssig, liquid (adj.) Flussigkeit, liquid (noun) lôslich, soluble Lôslichkeit, solubility abhângig, dependent A b h a n d l u n g ; treatise, paper, or transaction of a society berechnet, calculated Berichte, reports (specif., Berichte der deutschen chemiechen Jeeellechaft) entweder, either Entwickelung, evolution or development k a u m lôslich, scarcely soluble Klasse, class meines Erachtens, in m y opinion M a c h e - E i n h e i t , M a c h e unit; Mâuse-Einheit, mouse unit modifiziertes Bauer-Vogel Verfahren, modified B a u e r - V o g e l process M a y e r - B a u e r - V o g e l Verfahren, M a y e r - B a u e r - V o g e l process siehe Seite, see page Schwefelwasserstoffsaure, hydrosulfuric acid von Tausend, per mille Volumenteil, part by volume auf Gegenseitigkeit, mutual aussere Weite, outside diameter Fortsetzung folgt, to be continued (cf. 143) meiner Ansicht nach, in m y opinion unter dem M i k r o s k o p , under the microscope Gewichtsteil, part by weight Niederdruck, low pressure Reduktionsvermogen, reducing power Niederschlag, precipitate Siedepunkt, boiling point Normalkerze, standard candle (also abbreviated N K ) K o c h p u n k t , boiling point Naturforscher, scientific investigator Reaktionsgeschwindigkeit-Temperatur Regel, reaction-velocity-temperature rule U n u s u a l Abbreviations

187.

Achema

188. 189.

A t u or attt Dechema

190. 191. 192. 193. 194. 195. 196. 197. 198. 199. 200.

A.K.-Satz Labor Jato M o tο Tato F. Zj M/l M/2 msec. O/A T o r r . , T o r . or

201.

tor. Tin.

202. 203. 204. 205. 206. 207. 208. 209. 210.

Ann. Boll. Chim. Gaz. Gior. Rass. R.C. Riv. Sper.

Ausetellung fUr chemisches Apparatenwesen, E x h i b i t i o n for C h e m i c a l A p paratus and E q u i p m e n t Atmospharenuberdruck, metric atmospheres ( k g . / s q . cm.) excess pressure Deutsche Gesellschaft fllr chemisches Apparatenwesen, G e r m a n Association for Chemical Apparatus and E q u i p m e n t Aktivitàt8koefiizientsatz, activity coefficient rate Laboratorium, laboratory Jahrestonnen, tons per year Monatstonnen, tons per month Tagestonnen, tons per day Farbezahl gegen J o d , iodine number soluzione molare, molar solution soluzione mezzo molare, half-molar solution millesimo di secondo, thousandth of a second olio nell'acqua, oil in water T o r r i c e l l i — i . e . pressure of 1 m m . mercury, 1 /760 atmos. Genitive or dative plural of T e i l , part. breviation that is declined.) Annali Bolletino Chimica Gazetta Giornale Rassegna Rendiconti Rivista Sperimentale

(One of the rare instances of an ab



Table II.

515

Abbreviations Used in Chemisches Zentralblatt, Beilstein, Bulletin de la Société Chimique de France, and Bulletin Analytique Listed i n Chemisches Zentralblatt

A.


Abb. absol. Ae. akt. alkoh. allg. App. asymm. at. At.-Gew. ausg. AZ. bes. Best. Bibl. bin, biol. Bldg. bzgl. Bzl. Bzn. bzw. ca. Chlf. d. D. dad. gek. Darst. DK. Deriv. Dest. dest. E. Eig. Einfl. Einw. EMK. Entw. EZ. F. Fl. fl. Geh. gek. gesatt. Ggw. Herat. inakt. tern. tert. u.

A l k o h o l , alcohol (only for ethyl alcohol) A b b i l d u n g , illustration absolut, absolute Âther, ether (only for ethyl ether) aktiv, active alkoholisch, alcoholic allgemein, general or common A p p a r a t , apparatus; A p p a r a t u r , equipment unsymmetrisch, unsymmetrical Atmosphâre, atmosphere Atomgewicht, atomic weight auegegeben, yielded or produced Acetylzahl, acetyl number besonders, especially; insbesondere, particularly Bestimmung, determination Bibliographie, bibliography binàr, binary biologisch, biological B i l d u n g , formation or structure bezuglich, with reference to Benzol, benzene (sometimes benzol) Benzin, gasoline beziehungsweise, respectively zirka, approximately Chloroform, chloroform der, die, das, the Dichte, density (specific gravity) dadurch gekennzeichnet, characterized by Darstellung; preparation, p r o duction, description Dielektrizitàtskonstante, dielectric constant Dérivât, derivative Destination, distillation destilliert, distilled; destillieren, to distill Erstarrungspunkt; freezing point, solidification point Eigenschaft, property Einfluss, influence or effect E i n w i r k u n g , action or effect Elektromotorische K r a f t , electromotive force Entwickelung, development or generating (of gases) Esterzahl, ester number Fliesspunkt, melting point Fltlssigkeit, liquid or fluid flussig, liquid or fluid (adj.) Gehalt, content or capacity gekennzeichnet, characterized gesattigt, saturated Gegenwart, presence Herstellung, preparation or p r o duction inaktiv, inactive ternar, ternary tertiar, tertiary u n d , and

JZ. Koeff. Koll. koll. Konst. Konz. konz. korr. Kp. krist. KW-stoff Labor. lôsl. Lôsungsm. Lsg. M. Meth. Min. Mitt. mkr. Mol. mol. Mol.-Gew. Mol.-Refr. n. nachst. Nachw. Nd. opt-akt. PAe. pharmakol. physiol. Prâp. prim. Prior. Prod. rac. Red. red. Ref. Rk. s. schm. sd. Sek. sek. Spektr. std. Std. symm. Synth. Syst. SZ. Temp. Wrkg. wss.

Jodzahl, iodine number Koeffizient, coefficient K o l l o i d , colloid kolloid(al), colloidal Konstitution, constitution Konzentration, concentration konzentriert, concentrated korrigiert, corrected K o c h p u n k t , melting point kristallisiert, crystallized Kohlenwasserstoff, hydrocarbon L a b o r a t o r i u m , laboratory lôslich, soluble Losungsmittel, solvent Lôsung, solution Masse, mass Méthode, method M i n u t e , minute M i t t e i l u n g ; communication, report mikroskopisch, microscopic (al) M o l e k u l , molecule molar, molar; molekular, molecular Molekulargewicht, molecular weight Molekularrefraktion, molecular refraction normal, normal nachstehend, following or below Nachweis detection, proof, i n formation, index Niederschlag, precipitate optisch-aktiv, optically active Petrolàther, petroleum ether pharmakologisch, pharmacological physiologisch, physiological Pràparat, preparation primar, p r i m a r y Unionsprioritât, convention agreement, priority Produkt, product racemisch, racemic R e d u k t i o n , reduction reduziert, reduced Referat, abstract, review, report R e a k t i o n , reaction siehe, see schmelzen, melt; schmilzt, melts sieden, boil; siedet, boils Sekunde, second sekundâr, secondary S p e k t r u m , - r e n , spectrum(s) stundig, for an hour Stunde, -en, hour(s) symmetrisch, symmetric(al) Synthèse, -en, synthesis, -es System,-e, system(s) Saurezahl, acid number Temperatur, temperature W i r k u n g , action, effect, reaction, result wasserig, aqueous


ADVANCES IN CHEMISTRY SERIES

516

Table II (continued) u . a.


u.dgl. ungesàtt. unlôsl. Unters. usw. UV v. Verb. verd. Verf. Verh. Vers. verschied. Vf. Vgl. vgl. Vol. Vork. Vorr. vorst. VZ.

w.

u n d andere, and others; unter anderem, among others u n d dergleichen, and the like ungesâttigt, unsaturated unlôslich, insoluble Untersuchung, examination, i n vestigation, research und so weiter, and so forth, etc. Ultraviolet, ultraviolet v o n , v o m , from, by, of the Verbindung, compound or bond verdtlnnt, dilute(d) Verfahren, process or procedure Verhalten, behavior or quality Versuch, experiment or test verschiedene, various or different Verfasser, author or writer Vergleich, comparison vergleiche, compare, cf. Volumen, volume V o r k o m m e n ; presence, existence, deposit V o r r i c h t u n g ; device, apparatus, appliance vorstehend, aforesaid or preceding Verseifungszahl, saponification number or value Wasser, water

z.B. Zers. zers. Zus.

A.P. Aust. P. Belg. P . Can. P. Dan. P. D . B . P. D . R. P. E . P. F . P. Finn. P. Holl. P. Ind. P. It. P . Jug. P. N . P. Oe. P . Poln. P. Russ. P . Sch wed. P . Schz. P . Tschech. P . Ung. P.

z u m Beispiel, for example Zersetzung, decomposition zersetzen, -setzt, decompose(d) Zusammensetzung, composition, synthesis, combination Patent Abbreviations Ajnerican patent Australian patent Belgian patent C a n a d i a n patent D a n i s h patent G e r m a n patent (Munich) G e r m a n state patent English patent F r e n c h patent F i n n i s h patent Netherlands patent Indian patent Italian patent Yugoslav patent Norwegian patent Austrian patent Polish patent Russian patent Swedish patent Swiss patent Czech patent H u n g a r i a n patent

Listed i n Beilstein's H a n d b u c h der Organischen C h e m i e absol. ac. ather. AGFA akt. alkal. alkoh. ang. Anm. ar. asymm. At.-Gew. B. Bac. Bact. BASF ber. bzw. ca. D Darst. Dielektr.Konst. Diss. Ε Einw. EMK Ergw. F Hptw. inakt. konz.

absolut, absolute alicyclisch, alicyclic âtherisch, ethereal Aktien-Gesellschaft fur A n i l i n fabrikation aktiv, active alkalisch, alkaline alkoholisch, alcoholic angular, angular A n m e r k u n g , note or remark aromatisch, aromatic asymmetrisch, asymmetric (al) Atomgewicht, atomic weight B i l d u n g , formation or structure Bacillus, bacillus Bacterium, bacterium Badische A n i l i n - u n d Sodafabrik berechnet, calculated beziehungsweise, respectively circa, approximately Dichte, density Darstellung, preparation, description, production Dielektrizitatskonstante, dielectric constant Dissertation, dissertation, thesis Erstarrungspunkt, freezing point or solidification point E i n w i r k u n g , action or effect Elektromotorische K r a f t , elec tromotive force Ergànzungswerk, supplement Fliesspunkt, melting point Hauptwerk, m a i n work inaktiv, inactive konzentriert, concentrated

Mitarb. Mol.-Gew. Mol.-Refr. mail. opt .-akt. prim. Priv.-Mitt. racem. R.I.-Bzfg. RV S. s. s.a. s.o. s.u. sek. spezif. Spl. Stde(n). stdg. symm. Syst. N r . Tab. Temp. tert. T l . , Tie., Tin. V.

a

Mitarbeiter, coworker, collaborator, contributor Molekulargewicht, molecular wt. Molekularrefraktion, molecular refraction meso-, mesonormal, normal optisch-aktiv, optically active primâr, primary Privatmitteilung, personal c o m munication racemisch, racemic R i n g Index-Bezifferung, ring i n dex numeration Reduktionsvermôgen, reducing power Seite, page siehe, see siehe auch, see also siehe oben, see above (vide supra) siehe unten, see below (vide i n fra) sekundâr, secondary spezifisch, specific Supplement, supplement Stunde, -en, hour(s) stundig, for an hour, for χ hours symmetrisch, symmetric(al) System-Nummer, system number Tabelle, table, chart, etc. Temperatur, temperature terti&r, tertiary T e i l , -e, -en, part(s) V o r k o m m e n , presence, existence, deposit



517

Table II (continued) korr. Kp lin. m. Min.

korrigiert, corrected Kochpunkt, boiling point linear, linear molar, molar Minute, minute

ac. aig. ale. aid. anh. asym. B.-M. comb.

acide, acid a i g u i l l e s , needles alcool, alcohol aldéhyde, aldehyde anhydride, anhydride a s y m é t r i q u e , a s y m m e t r i c (al) bain-marie, water bath combinaison, combination, com pound, etc. c o m b i n a i s o n moléculaire, m o l e c ular combination concentré, concentrated condensation, condensation correspondant, corresponding cristaux, crystals cristallisation, crystallization densité, d e n s i t y dérivé, d e r i v e d o r d e r i v a t i v e distillation, distillation décomposition, decomposition eau de cristallisation, water of crystallization ebullition, boiling fusible à 200° avec décomposi tion, melts a t 200° with de composition gramme, gram insoluble dans l'eau, etc., i n soluble i n water, etc.

verd. vgl. a. vie. Vol. wassr. Zers.

verdUnnt, dilute(d) vergleich a u c h , compare also vicinal, vicinal Volumen, volume wassrig, aqueous Zersetzung, decomposition


Listed i n Bulletin de l a Société Chimique de France

comb. mol. cone. condens. corresp. crist. cristall. D dér. dist.

dec. 1,2 A q . ébull. F . 200°

(dec.) gr. insol. H 0 2

etc.

m. mm. mol. p. Ebioo F . (corr.) 0/0 0/00 p. rot. ppté pptation prép. proport. propr. R.M. R< sol. sol. aq. sol. alcool. sym. T. transf.

mètre, meter millimètre, m i l l i m e t e r molécule, molecule moléculaire, m o l e c u l a r parties, parts p o i n t d'ébullition s o u s 1 0 0 m m . , b o i l i n g p o i n t a t 100 m m . p o i n t d e f u s i o n corrigé, m e l t i n g p o i n t (corrected) p o u r cent, per cent pour mille, per m i l pouvoir rotatoire, rotatory power précipité, p r e c i p i t a t e d précipitation, p r e c i p i t a t i o n préparer, p r e p a r e préparation, p r e p a r a t i o n proportionnel, proportional propriété, p r o p e r t y réfraction m o l é c u l a i r e , m o l e c u l a r refraction rendement, yield soluble, soluble solution aqueuse, aqueous s o l u tion solution alcoolique, alcoholic solu tion s y m é t r i q u e , s y m m e t r i c (al) température, t e m p e r a t u r e transformation, conversion, transformation, rearrangement

Listed i n Bulletin Analytique of the Centre de Documentation d u Centre National de l a Recherche Scientifique at m . BF BT c c.a. c.c. cal. ch coeff. c/s cte d db diff. de pot. dpi. Ε f.c.é.m. f.é.m. g groupt

atmosphère, atmosphere basse f r é q u e n c e , l o w f r e q u e n c y basse t e n s i o n , l o w p r e s s u r e o r l o w tension concentration, concentration courant alternatif, alternating current courant continu, direct current calorie-gramme, g r a m calorie cheval-vapeur, horsepower coefficient, coefficient cycle p a r seconde, cycle p e r sec. constante, constant densité, d e n s i t y décibel, decibel différence d e p o t e n t i e l , p o t e n t i a l difference dépliant, folder Est, East force contre-électromotrice, b a c k electromotive force force électromotrice, electromo t i v e force gramme, gram groupement, group o r connection

IR j k 1 M max. M F min. mol. moy. mn N P. PE PF p.p.m. QR rdt S s sol.

infrarouge, infrared jour, d a y kilo, kilogram litre, liter masse moléculaire, molecular mass maximum, maximum m o y e n n e fréquence, m e d i u m fre quency minimum, minimum molécule, molecule m o y e n , mean, average, m e d i u m minute, minute Nord, North pression, pressure p o i n t d'ébullition, b o i l i n g p o i n t point de fusion, melting point partie p a r million, part per m i l lion quotient respiratoire, respiratory quotient rendement, yield Sud, south seconde, second solution, solution


ADVANCES IN CHEMISTRY SERIES

518

Table II (continued) h HF HP HT inf.

heure, hour haute fréquence, high frequency horsepower haute tension, high pressure or high tension inférieur, inferior, lower, less

sup. t° UI UV V

supérieur, higher, upper, more température, temperature unité internationale, international unit ultraviolet, ultraviolet vitesse, velocity

E v e r y volume of Beilstein lists publications cited i n v o l u m e . * F i r s t page of every volume lists abbreviations a n d exact titles of publications abstracted.

α

Major Forms of Abbreviations


Although a uniform system of abbreviation coinage does not exist i n German, French, or Italian, any more than i n English, abbreviations in these languages generally embody one of three major forms. 1. The first letter of the word being abbreviated, or, when several words or an ex pression are abbreviated, the initial letter of each of the words, with or without periods or spaces between them. The letter or letters of the abbreviation may or may not be capital letters, depending on factors discussed in connection with capitalization requirements i n German. Examples h through 32 (Table I) illustrate this most common form of abbre viation. 2. Two, three, or more letters of the word or words being abbreviated, or in the case of German compound words, the first two or three letters of one or all of the elements in the compound. -This type of abbreviation is reflected in examples 33 through 71. 3. The initial and last letter of a word, or the first two or three letters plus the last (more properly called contraction). I n French, where the distinction between an abbre viation and a contraction is much more rigorously observed, a period generally denotes an abbreviation and the lack of one a contraction. Contractions are more common in French, especially for titles, than i n the other two languages. A number of typical con tractions are listed in examples 72 through 94. There are many words, especially i n German, for which several abbreviations are in use. These generally differ only i n length. A s examples 95 through 113 show, i t can be assumed that originally the longer, and consequently less ambiguous, forms were i n use and that these were later shortened until only a single letter came to be accepted. B u t because these single-letter abbreviations could have several meanings and confusion set in, editors reluctantly agreed to revert to the earlier, longer forms. T h e evidence to sup port this assumption, although not conclusive, is fairly substantial. I n Italian, this form of confusion is rare.

Abbreviations with Several Meanings M a n y abbreviations, especially those consisting of only the original letter of the words they represent, have several meanings. When any of the abbreviations listed i n examples 114 through 126 are encountered, only the context can provide a clue as to the correct meaning. Single-letter abbreviations are not the only ones that can have several mean ings. A s examples 127 through 139 indicate, the same is true of abbreviations consisting of several letters, although naturally not so frequently. T o confuse matters even more, occasionally an abbreviation can represent two words of not only different but even con tradictory meaning, as examples 140 and 141 attest. The plural form of nouns is abbreviated in one of three ways: by doubling the letter used to abbreviate the noun in its singular form (examples 142 through 146), by doubling the last letter of the abbreviation when the latter consists of several letters (examples 147 through 154), or by adding the last letter of the plural noun to the singular abbrevia tion. A glance at examples 155 through 161 reveals that, in German, this last type of plural formation is achieved by adding an e or an n, and i n French by adding an s or an x. I n German, nouns must be capitalized. Fortunately, this practice is also observed in the abbreviations. One can therefore differentiate between two similar abbreviations LITERATURE RESOURCES Advances in Chemistry; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1954.



519

which differ only ui that respect. As examples 162 through 164 show, the abbreviation of an adjective and that of its corresponding noun are frequently the same, except for the initial capital in the abbreviation of the noun. In examples 165 through 171, the fact that one of two otherwise identical abbreviations begins with a capital letter is of considerable help in distinguishing between two or more meanings. In German abbreviations containing both upper and lower case letters (with or without periods or spaces between them), it can be assumed for all practical purposes that the capital letter or letters will invariably refer to nouns, as evidenced by examples 172 through 176. In two-letter abbreviations representing compound words, if both letters are capitals followed by periods, the abbreviation generally represents a compound noun, each of its two letters being the initial letter of each noun (examples 177 through 180). If the second letter is in lower case, both letters were taken from the first element of the compound word and there is no period between them (examples 181 and 182). There are exceptions, as examples 183 and 184 indicate. German compound nouns may also be abbreviated with three letters, in which case either only the initial one (example 185) or all three (example 186) are in upper case. Table III.

Dictionaries

Baudry, Hubert. " D . A. Dictionnaire d'Abréviations Françaises et Etrangères—techniques et usuelles, anciennes et nouvelles," Paris, 1951. De Vries, Louis. "German-English Technical and Engineering Dictionary," McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., New York, 1950. See pp. 893-928. Kettridge, J. O. "French-English Dictionary of Technical Terms and Phrases," H. W. Wilson Co., New York, 1949. See pp. 539-541. Mansion, J. E. "Heath's Standard French and English Dictionary," D. C. Heath & Co., New York, 1939. See pp. 907-912 of Part I. Patterson, Austin M. " A German-English Dictionary for Chemists," 3rd ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1950. Abbreviations included in text. Patterson, Austin M. "A French-English Dictionary for Chemists," 2nd ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1954. Abbreviations included in text. Pfohl, Ernst. "Kurzwort-Lexikon (KWL)," Muth'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart, 1934. Dictionary of German abbreviations from many fields. Peyser, Alfred. "Pars pro Toto, Breviarium Medicum Internationale," Almquist & Wiksell, Upsala, 1950. Abbreviations used in international medical literature and related sciences. Webel, A. A. " A German-English Technical and Scientific Dictionary," 2nd ed., E. P. Dutton & Co., New York, 1937. Abbreviations separately listed in back. Examples 187 through 208 cover a number of unusual or otherwise interesting abbreviations, as well as the abbreviations most commonly found in the names of Italian publications. Table III gives a list of readily accessible dictionaries which may be worth consulting for the key to obscure foreign abbreviations. RECEIVED June 2, 1954.

Presented before the Division of Chemical Literature, at the 124th Meeting of

the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Chicago, 111.


Abbreviations in the German, French, And Italian Literature - Advances

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