Beary-Kannada-English dictionary to hit stands soon

A first-of-its-kind Beary-Kannada-English Dictionary will be released at Town Hall in the city at 4 pm on July 31.

The ambitious project of Karnataka Beary Sahitya Academy was in the making from over two years and it is finally becoming a reality.

Academy chairman B A Muhammed Haneef told reporters on Thursday that the dictionary, running into more than 876 pages, will be offered at the discount price of Rs 500 against the original cover price of Rs 700.

In all, 1,000 copies will be printed for the inaugural sales, he added.

Elaborating on the dictionary, which was a daunting task undertook by the academy, Haneef said, “It includes 20,000 words with 50% of the words derived from other languages, along with roman scripts.”

The editorial committee involved in the task from over two years, included the sitting chairman of the academy as its chief editor, followed by then registrar Umarabba as its member secretary, Prof B M Ichlangodu as its editor, B A Shamshuddin Madikeri and Abdul Rehman Kutthethur as assistant editors, which was later joined by Zohara Abbas and Prof B Surendra Rao as experts in English.

Answering a particular query, Ichlangodu said owing to paucity of time they could not include 10,000 more words.

Prof Rao said it was indeed a challenging task as it reaffirmed the fact that languages share a close bond rather than individuals who remain indifferent. However, the very exercise should be a continuous process by bringing out revised editions of the dictionary, he suggested.

Academy registrar Chandrahas Rai B said, “In all, Rs 35 lakh has been spent on the project, which includes printing cost and honorarium for those involved in the job, among other expenditures.”

Inaugural session
Prof Arvind Malagathi from Mysuru will inaugurate the programme, while Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment B Ramanath Rai will dedicate the dictionary and former education minister B A Mohiddin will receive the first copy.

Food and Civil Supplies Minister U T Khader will release ‘Belkiri,’ a special issue and Puttur MLA B Shakunthala B Shetty will receive the first copy of the issue.

Former vice chancellor of Hampi Kannada University Prof B A Viveka Rai will speak on the project, while journalist B M Haneef will delve into the dictionary for the benefit of the gathering.