The final volumes in what is being touted as the world’s largest Chinese character dictionary are scheduled to be published in May. <\/p>\n
The fifteen-volume work (excluding the index) will reportedly cover some 60,000 Chinese characters and include about 500,000 Sinitic words. By comparison, the Zhongwen da cidian<\/em> (中文大辭典 \/ Zhōngwén dà cídiǎn<\/span>), published in Taiwan in the 1960s covers 49,905 Chinese characters. <\/p>\n The project was initiated by the Institute of Oriental Studies of Dankook University, South Korea, in 1978. <\/p>\n The first volume of the 『漢韓大辭典 』 (in Mandarin: Hàn-Hán dà cídiǎn<\/span>; “Dictionary of Chinese characters Korean use,” as it is translated on the institute’s Web site) was issued in 1999. Last year, volumes 10-12 were published. <\/p>\n The project has reportedly cost more than W20 billion (US$21.3 million). <\/p>\n Yet more work may still be needed. <\/p>\n Prof. Kim Eon-jong of the Department of Korean Literature in Classical Chinese at Korea University said, “This project has great significance from the standpoint of cultural history. But it’s a pity that the institute hastened the final stage. It must complement and supplement the dictionary later.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n sources: <\/p>\n The final volumes in what is being touted as the world’s largest Chinese character dictionary are scheduled to be published in May. The fifteen-volume work (excluding the index) will reportedly cover some 60,000 Chinese characters and include about 500,000 Sinitic … Continue reading \n
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