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Contact:

Antton Gurrutxaga

Elhuyar Fundazioa

Contact details:

a.gurrutxaga@elhuyar.com

(+34) 943 363040

2009/11/2

Basque encyclopaedic science and technology dictionary

The Elhuyar Basque encyclopaedic dictionary of science and technology (Elhuyar zientzia eta teknologiaren hiztegi entziklopedikoa) is now on sale, being the first of its kind to be published in the Basque language, Euskara. Under the direction of Antón Gurrutxaga, some 200 experts have taken part in this work over the years. Published by the Elhuyar Foundation and the University of the Basque Country, with the sponsorship of the Euskadiko Kutxa-Caja Laboral Bank, it is an encyclopaedic dictionary of 1,800 pages. “The work has been highly satisfying and, at the same time, it has been greatly enriching to have been able to count on the help of 200 experts in this project” stated Mr Gurrutxaga.

Eight years ago a team at Elhuyar began to compile the Elhuyar encyclopaedic dictionary of science and technology with the clear goal of “Providing a reference work of reliable and basic information about science and technology and which would be well-researched and updated, each entry being exact, clear and understandable, taking into account the wide range of users involved”. Four years ago, the project began to take some shape and experts from 50 fields in science and technology met together in order to give shape to the project. This objective is reflected in the concepts from all areas of science and technology that the 23,000 dictionary’s entries represent. This work will be of great interest to those persons involved in themes of science and technology: pupils and teachers at secondary and technical training schools, universities, journalists, parents and indeed the public at large interested in science and technology topics.

The experts who have worked on drawing up this work have had to select concepts for entry, decide their definitions and write a large number of comprehensive articles for the encyclopaedia. Some 50 fields of information in science and technology are covered, the information being divided into the following areas: exact sciences, material and energy sciences, Earth sciences, life sciences, health, technology and general topics.

Features of the dictionary

• 23,000 concepts with their definitions and equivalents in English, Spanish and French.
• Lists of terms in Spanish-Basque, English-Basque and French-Basque.
• 1,500 illustrations.
• 607 encyclopaedic articles.
• The dictionary is published in both book and CD-ROM formats.