Diccionario Cultural Dominicano Launched in Nation’s Capital

Convened by the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and the Georgetown Center for Latin American Studies in a room overlooking the sun-speckled waters of the Potomac River at the Georgetown University Library, students, professionals, and cultural enthusiasts gathered to attend the DC launch of the Diccionario Cultural Dominicano.

Headed Dr. Jimmy Sierra, author of the Diccionario and collaborator Héctor Martínez, the event was moderated by Father Matthew E. Carnes, Associate Professor in the Department of Government at the Georgetown School of Foreign Service.

The launch began with an address from Semiramis de Miranda, Acting Co-Executive Director of GFDD, who noted
the importance of the Diccionario in a rapidly evolving world and gave thanks to all those present. She then introduced the speakers and noted the presence of a high-level delegation from the Embassy of the Dominican Republic in the United States, headed by Ambassador José Tomás Pérez, which made the trek to Georgetown in a show of cultural support.

During
the event, Ambassador Pérez spoke with Sierra and Martínez about the work they conducted leading up to the launch of this important cultural tome, and even saw his own upcoming publication discussed during the session. Concerning the Diccionario, Ambassador Pérez stated that it is an “instrument of incredible value.”

In his remarks, Father Carnes spoke of the longstanding relationship that Georgetown’s Center for Latin
American Studies has with the Dominican community. Meanwhile, Dr. Sierra spoke of the seven years of hard work that he and collaborators Reynaldo Disla, Héctor Martínez, León Félix Batista, and Carlos Peña dedicated to the Diccionario.

Héctor Martínez detailed that the compilation was uniquely difficult because the Diccionario is “a constantly evolving work,” underlining the importance of the upcoming web-based
multimedia platform for the book of reference and its ability to incorporate new events as they unfold.

With a total of 1,164 entries, the Diccionario Cultural Dominicano is an encyclopedic dictionary which synthesizes key Dominican cultural figures, groups, institutions, and events, making them easily accessible to anyone interested in learning more about the people and events that have shaped the trajectory of the Dominican Republic. It is a
publication of Editorial Funglode.

About Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD):
The Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD), sister organization of Funglode in the United States, is a non-partisan and non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of collaboration between organizations in the United States and the Dominican Republic in order to conduct research, enhance public debate, design public policy,
propose strategies and provide training to facilitate change in crucial areas of the social, economic and democratic development of the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean and Latin America.