Hemkosh’s Braille edition enters Guinness Book of World Records

The dictionary contains 90,640 words printed in 21 volumes and 6 parts, across 10,279 pages, weighing 80.800 Kg

History was created when Hemkosh’s Braille Edition was officially recognized by the Guinness World Records as the “Largest Bilingual Braille Dictionary” on May 1.

Interestingly, May 1 also marked the 127th death anniversary of ‘Bhaxar Oja’ Late Hemchandra Baruah, the prominent Assamese writer and social reformer who compiled the first-ever Assamese language dictionary ‘Hemkosh’. The Braille edition is the adaptation of Hemkosh’s 14th Edition’s regular dictionary.

Jayanta Baruah, publisher of Hemkosh and chairman of Pratidin Media Network received the Guinness World Records certificate of ‘Largest Bilingual Braille Dictionary’ from Rishi Nath, official adjudicator for Guinness World Records TM at an august gathering held in Guwahati.

Assam Governor Gulab Chand Kataria, Assam Minister Pijus Hazarika, Vice Chancellor of Gauhati University, Professor Pratap Jyoti Handique, Professor of Sanskrit, Delhi University, Dr. Bhartendu Pandey and several other eminent academicians, journalists, litterateurs, and socio-cultural organizational leaders were present at the certificate handing over event.

To continue the legacy of ‘Hemkosh,’ Jayanta Baruah, the grandson of Late Hemchandra Baruah, conceptualized and published the Braille edition of the dictionary.

The dictionary contains 90,640 words printed in 21 volumes and 6 parts, across 10,279 pages, weighing 80.800 Kg. It is worth mentioning that this Braille version of Hemkosh is the first full language dictionary in Braille after Oxford.

‘Hemkosh’ is the first-ever Assamese language dictionary compiled by Late Hemchandra Baruah in the late 19th century. The dictionary was published four years after his death, and subsequent editions were compiled and edited by his family, especially the fourth to the 14th edition by Late Debananda Baruah. The 15th edition of the ‘Hemkosh’ dictionary is currently under production under the leadership of Jayanta Baruah.

‘Hemkosh’ is the first etymological dictionary of the Assamese language and is bilingual, meaning that children can benefit from it in both English and Assamese languages.

Earlier, on September 16th, 2022, the dictionary was formally launched in Guwahati, in the presence of the then Governor of Assam, Professor Jagdish Mukhi.
On September 21st, 2022, Jayanta Baruah officially presented the first copy of the Hemkosh Braille Dictionary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and PM Modi lauded the initiative on his 93rd Mann Ki Baat on September 25, 2022.

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