Canarian Speech Dictionary Revived After 23 Years

A new edition of the "Gran diccionario del habla canaria" (Grand Dictionary of Canarian Speech) has just been released. This important work by journalist, writer, and lexicographer Alfonso O’Shanahan (1944-2009) contains over 13,000 Canarian words and phrases across more than 1,200 pages. It's a valuable resource for understanding Canarian culture.

For nearly 20 years, O’Shanahan collected words and expressions from Gran Canaria, folklore songs from all the islands, popular music, and ballads. He also included and documented findings from newspapers and hundreds of books by well-known Canarian authors.

The dictionary's revival was made possible by the Directorate General of Culture and Cultural Heritage of the Government of the Canary Islands and the Centro de la Cultura Popular Canaria (Center for Canarian Popular Culture). It was already considered a cultural milestone back in 1995.

The "Gran diccionario del habla canaria" was praised by leading figures in Canarian literature, including critic, essayist, and poet Eugenio Padorno, as well as Carlos Pinto Grote, Rafael Arozarena, and Sebastián Sosa Barroso.

The dictionary was re-edited three times (in 1996, 1998, and 2002) to meet demand, but it has been out of print for the last 23 years. Making this valuable tool available again is important, especially now, as many elements of Canarian speech are disappearing, leading to a loss of the islands' cultural heritage.

Alfonso O’Shanahan Roca (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 1944-2009) was a journalist, writer, and lexicographer who wrote poetry, novels, essays, and newspaper articles. He is remembered for his series "Ideogramas," "Crónicas diacrónicas," "El laberinto de las hadas," "Memorial para un fin de siglo," and "Torre del viento." He also managed the literary supplements "Collage de las artes y las letras" and "Cartel de las artes y las letras."

He began his literary career writing poetry and authored three novels: "Antípodos (Cien años de expiación)" from 1980, "Equinoccio (Crónica verdadera del Gran Capitán destas islas de la mar océana)," published by the CCPC in 1985, and "Solsticio de verano," which appeared in 1990.