When did foreign language dictionaries first appear?

The first French-English dictionary was published in 1580, and the first Spanish-English dictionary appeared in 1591. The year 1596 saw the first French-German dictionary, and the first Italian-English dictionary was published in 1598. The Swedish waited for the first Swedish-French dictionary to appear until 1694, and the first English-Swedish dictionary was published in 1734. As for the first German-Swedish dictionary, it was completed in 1749.

Before being able to find an adequate word in a dictionary, translators would seek help in Latin or be aided by someone whose mother tongue happened to be the target language.

It's also interesting that it was mostly women who worked as translators. This tradition persevered until the early 20th century, when 40% of literary translations were done by women, Profis reports.

Some of the great ladies who contributed to a better intercultural understanding are Italian Giuseppa-Eleonora Barbapiccola, Maria Sipayllowna from Poland, Germans Eleonora von Sporck and Louise Gottsched, Dorothea Biehl and Brigitte Thott from Denmark, Catharina Gyllengrip from Sweden, Genevieve Chapelain and Anne Dacier from France and Margaret Beaufort, Aphra Behn, Elisabeth Gary from England, as well as many others.

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Giuseppa Eleonora Barbapiccola

Maria Sipayllowna

Eleonora von Sporck

Louise Gottsched

Dorothea Biehl

Brigitte Thott

Catharina Gyllengrip

Genevieve Chapelain

Anne Dacier

Margaret Beaufort

Aphra Behn

Elisabeth Gary