As the Pali Text Society began issuing editons and translations of the Pali Canon and Commentaries in quick succession, Rhys Davids conceived the idea of the compilation of an exhaustive dictionary of Pali, based on the voluminous basic material that was being brought to light. the work took more than twenty years of devoted labour but before his death in 1922, Rhys Davids had the satisfaction of seeing its first volume published.