Chinese dictionary with Tibetan translation of headwords published

XINING, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- A new edition of the Contemporary Chinese Dictionary has been published, with all of its 70,000-plus headwords translated into Tibetan.

The dictionary, which took nearly nine years in its making, is the first Chinese-Tibetan bilingual edition of an authoritative reference book for promoting the standard Chinese language.

Jointly published by China Tibetology Publishing House and the Commercial Press, the dictionary is compiled by 15 experts from colleges and research institutions, based on the seventh edition of the Contemporary Chinese Dictionary.

During the compilation process, the experts put great efforts into translating complicated words, biological and technical terms, idioms, allusions, proverbs, ancient Chinese words, and literature titles.

"Tibetan people have an increasing desire to learn and master standard Chinese while using their own language," said Wu Dejun, director of Qinghai's provincial ethnic and religious affairs committee. "However, there has been a long-standing dearth of authoritative, handy and practical Chinese-Tibetan bilingual reference books."

Sangye, chief of the compilation team and a professor at Qinghai Nationalities University, said the publication of the dictionary will contribute to filling in the academic gap on Chinese-Tibetan reference books and serve as a bridge for enhancing ethnic exchanges.