This was stated by the deputy director of the National Library of Belarus for research and publishing, scientific editor of the encyclopedia Francysk Skaryna, Alexander Susha, at the press conference in the BelTA press center.

The large-scale celebrations of the 500th anniversary of Belarusian book-printing have made the identity of the Belarusian first printer even more recognizable in the world, the scientist emphasized summing up the jubilee year. The book projects, which have been published in recent years, have a big role in the promotion of information about Francysk Skaryna. One of such publications is the personal encyclopedia Francysk Skaryna, which sums up all previous work.

The encyclopedia was published by the publishing house "Belarusian Encyclopedia named after Petrus Brovka." The edition, written by 150 authors, contains more than 1 thousand articles and about 500 photographs. According to Alexander Susha, PhD, the encyclopedia includes some articles from the directory about Skaryna, published 30 years ago, but mainly this book is written anew.

Due to the national component, this scientific and popular publication about the personality of Skaryna, his activities and heritage is expanding the cultural and information field of modern society, Alexander Lukasanets, the academician and member of the editorial board of the encyclopedia Francysk Skaryna, added.

The encyclopedia reveals the multifaceted life and creative career of Francysk Skaryna, analyzes all of his books, their content, the conditions of preparation and design, and tells about the countries and cities relating to the Belarusian enlightener. It also contains biographies of people with whom he was connected during life or who influenced his book publishing activities, as well as biographies of the first printer’s followers. The publication reveals the image of Francysk Skaryna in the Belarusian cinema and theatrical art, painting and literature.

According to Belarus First Deputy Minister of Information Igor Lutsky, the circulation of the publication is small, and that is why the concept of an online encyclopedia has been suggested. The publishing house "Belarusian Encyclopedia named after Petrus Brovka" is invited to look for an option for realizing such a project. Also it is planned to involve private organizations, engaged in the development of sites. It is expected that the electronic encyclopedia about Francysk Skaryna will become an example of partnership between public and private actors.

The book was published in the Belarusian language. The online project will include texts in English and other languages. Moreover, we are talking about the translation of some articles in Hindi. "Translation of literature is the best way to popularize Belarusian culture outside of our country," Alies Susha says.

In 2017, the 500th anniversary of the Belarusian book-printing has been widely reflected in the major cultural and information projects of this year. One of them is the multi-volume facsimile Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna, prepared by the National Library of Belarus with the support of BelVEB Bank. The facsimile of Skaryna’s works has been donated to more than 30 libraries of different countries. The "Skoriniana" editions have been on display at international book and national exhibitions in Russia, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Serbia, France, Germany and China.

Based on BelTA open sources

See also:

The personality of Francysk Skaryna becomes one of the symbols of Belarus

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