The Dictionary (4th Edition)

First Appearance and Context

• Quoted as "THE DICTIONARY, 4th edition, A.R. 3000" for the headword "Terrible Events," defining it as a worldwide catastrophe—poorly documented and generally ascribed to human causes—that ended the Praxic Age and led directly to the Reconstitution.
• Earlier in the narrative, cited for the headword "sline," presented with multiple senses and an editorial preference note.
• Also quoted for the headword "Gardan’s Steelyard," attributing the rule to Fraa Gardan and framing it as a preference for simpler, less complex hypotheses.
• Newly cited for the headword "Peregrin," which presents multiple senses: an ancient epoch following the destruction of the Temple of Orithena (see Peregrin Period); a wandering theor who survived Orithena; a Dialog dating to that era; and, in modern usage, an avout who leaves the math under exceptional circumstances and travels in the Sæculum while trying to observe the Discipline (see Peregrin).

Relationships and Affiliations

• A specific, dated edition within the broader reference work The Dictionary.
• The narrative explains that an edition of the Dictionary is compiled at a Convox held at each Millennium to serve for the following thousand years; Convox also handles other business of concern to the Thousanders. Compilers or sponsoring orders have not been identified in available material.

Important Actions

• Serves as an authoritative lexicon used in-text to anchor terminology across periods of Orth, often tagging senses by era (e.g., Proto‑, Old, Middle, Praxic, New Orth) and appending usage notes that guide preference among senses.
• Provides succinct historical signals within definitions, clarifying major periods and institutions invoked in the narrative (e.g., the catastrophe labeled "Terrible Events" and the renewal denoted by "Reconstitution").
• Supplies named rules and concepts as headwords (e.g., Gardan’s Steelyard) that avout cite in reasoning.

Descriptions and Characteristics

• Citation style appears in uppercase for the work name ("THE DICTIONARY"), followed by edition and date.
• Entries are structured as numbered senses with period labels and occasional commentary or usage notes. Selected examples include social or institutional terms (e.g., "sline"), methodological rules, historical periods, and multi‑sense terms like "Peregrin" spanning epoch, person, dialog, and modern practice.

Current Status/Location

Known through in‑text citations and quotations. The physical form, publication venue, and custody of this edition are not specified.