Gujarati Vishwakosh (Gujarati:ગુજરાતી વિશ્વકોશ, Literally: Gujarati Encyclopedia) is an encyclopedia in Gujarati, one of the official languages of India. It can be considered the first full encyclopedia in the Gujarati language. Under guidance of Dhirubhai Thaker, work started in 1985 and ended in 2009 consisting of 25 volumes with 23,000 entries.
Contents
History
After the formation of the state of Gujarat in 1960 based on the native language speaking area, there was a need for literature available to the Gujarati speaking public. After years of efforts by Dhirubhai Thaker, the Gujarat Vishwakosh Trust was set up in 1985 comprising many scholars and people of various disciplines. Work commenced to create this massive encyclopedia in 1985 under Gujarati writer Dhirubhai Thaker. The first concept was to create 20 volumes (with an additional introductory volume), but by its completion in 2009, the encyclopedia included 25 volumes, which comprised more than 23,000 topics.
Reception
In the words of Kumarpal Desai, managing trustee of Gujarat Vishwakosh Trust "This was a noble task and a lot of hard work and dedication went into this enormous effort with support from hundreds of people. This is a 50th birthday gift to Gujarat."
Costs and funding
This mammoth task needed a huge funding and social worker Sakarchand Patel was among the first donors. Many others were to follow with liberal donations in funding this academic exercise which has finally cost ₹25 million.