Massive new Tibetan dictionary will help protect against Chinese encroachment
US Rep. Jim McGovern (right) looks on as Geshe Lobsang Monlam (second from right), and Sikyong Penpa Tsering (left) attend a ceremony for the presentation of the Tibetan Grand Monlam Dictionary to the Library of Congress on December 12. (Palden Gyal/Radio Free Asia)
A new 223-volume Tibetan dictionary containing definitions of over 300,000 words presented to the Library of Congress last week will play a key role in preserving the Tibetan language amid China’s assimilation policies in the region, US lawmakers and advocates said.
The Monlam Grand Tibetan Dictionary project, which began in 2012 under the advice and guidance of the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhism’s spiritual leader, took 150 people working over nine years to complete. It is one of the largest dictionaries in the world.
The project was overseen by the Monlam Tibetan IT Research Centre in Dharamsala, India. The education software development firm founded in 2012 is funded by the Dalai Lama Trust, the Tibet Fund and the United States Agency for International Development.
