The Encyclopaedia of Iranian Languages ​​and Dialects

The Encyclopaedia of Iranian Languages ​​and Dialects is the first of its kind. It will be compiled in four volumes in the Centre for the Great Islamic Encyclopaedia to introduce and keep a record of Iranian languages ​​and dialects. The encyclopaedia’s initial outline was prepared in 2010, and with the approval of the Scientific High Council of the Centre, the project began. The linguistics department of the Centre has now authored a significant number of the articles and is currently editing them after creating a guideline, collecting sources, and identifying the authors and researchers of the field in Iran and abroad.

Documentation and preservation of languages ​​and dialects have become a particular necessity, all over the world, especially in the current century. The increasing industrialization and expansion of communication tools, social changes, including the migration of villagers and residents of small towns to big cities, and the disappearance of many villages bring many languages ​​and dialects to the verge of extinction. According to UNESCO, more than two thousand languages and dialects have disappeared in the past millennium, especially in the last century. The loss of a language is a social, cultural and scientific disaster; language is a means of expressing societies’ unique knowledge, history and worldview. Each language reveals a remarkable stage of evolution in people’s communication and thinking abilities.

Hence, planning to collect data about languages ​​and dialects and their maintenance should be at the forefront of society’s research projects. One of the most efficient programs is the compilation of language and dialect encyclopaedias and books. It is not only an effective way to recognize the languages ​​and dialects of this region, but it will make the necessary resources available to researchers worldwide. Also, identifying languages ​​and dialects is a step towards compiling an atlas of Iranian languages ​​and dialects, and it will be a base for linguistic research. Holding international and domestic conferences and training workshops for collecting Iranian languages ​​and dialects data to add unidentified encyclopaedia entries and expand research cooperation with research centres and universities around the world are among the related programs. We request the collaboration of professors and researchers interested in Iranian languages ​​and dialects, specialising in a language or dialect, or having authored works in the field. Moreover, we request the researchers to send us their unpublished works to participate in this imperative national project.