The Fo Guang Dictionary of Buddhism English Edition to Launch in November 2026, Registration Opens for Online Information Sessions

By Neng Ju

The Fo Guang Dictionary of Buddhism (English Edition) will be officially launched at Nanhua University in Chiayi, Taiwan, on Monday, November 9, 2026. The launch will mark the release of the English print edition alongside the Chinese-English bilingual digital edition. The following day, the Fo Guang Shan Institute of Humanistic Buddhism will host a webinar introducing the dictionary and foguang.ai , offered in two time slots.

Compiled under the supervision of Venerable Master Hsing Yun, Founding Master of Fo Guang Shan, the dictionary was first published in 1988, followed by a revised and expanded edition in 2014. With more than 32,000 entries and nearly ten million Chinese characters, it covers Buddhist doctrines, sutras, figures, schools, history, art, and cultural artifacts.

The English translation project began in late 2014. Dr. Lewis R. Lancaster, Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, serves as Executive Academic Advisor. Venerable Miao Guang, the Venerable Master’s personal English interpreter and Deputy Chancellor of the Institute, serves as Project Director and Editor-in-Chief. The project has brought together monastics, scholars, translators, and volunteers from around the world in a sustained collaborative effort.

The translation has required careful attention to Buddhist terminology, canonical quotations, variant translations, and differences in cultural context. The team has developed shared terminology resources, digital collaboration systems, and editorial review procedures. Computer-assisted translation and AI technologies have helped streamline this work, while specialists retain final responsibility for doctrinal interpretation, textual verification, and translation quality.

The FGS Institute of Humanistic Buddhism has also collaborated with MITRA to develop foguang.ai , a platform that combines specialized Buddhist language resources with artificial intelligence to support multilingual translation of Buddhist sutras and texts related to Humanistic Buddhism. Version 2.0 integrates translation, editing, terminology management, and translation quality assessment, helping users evaluate fidelity to the source text, fluency, and terminological consistency.

The November 10 webinar will be conducted in English with live AI-generated Chinese subtitles. Professor Lancaster has been invited to deliver remarks. The program will include:

Address by the Executive Academic Advisor

Dr. Lewis R Lancaster

● The English Edition—History and Editorial Approach
Venerable Miao Guang

● Introducing the Chinese and English Editions in Print and Online
Venerable You Zai

● Using the Fo Guang Dictionary of Buddhism and foguang.ai
Venerable Zhi Yue

● Reflections from the Translation Team and Q&A

Buddhist studies scholars, translators, librarians, digital humanities researchers, and other interested participants are welcome to register.

● Registration

Europe / Asia: November 10, 7:30–9:30 p.m., Taiwan time

North America: November 10, 9:30–11:30 a.m., Taiwan time
Equivalent to November 9, 5:30–7:30 p.m. PST / 8:30–10:30 p.m. EST.

Registration link：forms.gle/FQFo4xG4hHhgtiy1A