We’ve talked about this for ages, and maybe because it’s the dull period between winter and Mud Season we finally began gathering from the rich storehouse that is Berkshire Publishing or Bao Ku Shan 宝库山. Lots more coming, but I see some favorites, including “How to Spell It and How to Say It: 100 Important People, Places, and Terms in World History,” which begins,

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” Each time Berkshire Publishing Group sets to work on creating an encyclopedia, we review our guidelines on how we will present the names and terms that have changed in the course of history or through language alterations. We strive for consistency, though not the foolish kind against which Emerson warned. Languages and geographic terms evolve regularly, and sometimes staying current means that we can’t be completely consistent. Adding to the challenge is the fact that words in languages not based on the Latin alphabet (e.g., Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew) must be transliterated—spelled in the language of another alphabet or “romanized” into English. And even within a language, transliteration systems change. Many people who grew up knowing the Wade-Giles system of Chinese romanization (with such spellings as Peking and Mao Tse-tung) had to become accustomed to seeing words using the pinyan romanization system introduced in the 1950s (with new spellings such as Beijing and Mao Zedong). By and large,we look to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (known as M-W 11), as our spelling authority, with Merriam-Webster’s Biographical Dictionary and M-W’s Geographic Dictionary for terms not in M-W 11. However, sometimes we overrule Merriam-Webster for a compelling reason.

It gets into the nitty-gritty of what we’ve dealt with but mostly it’s a practical guide for anyone who needs to talk about world events and is puzzled by how to pronounce important names.

The China coloring map comes in 2 sizes – the larger is designed to be printed on 2 sheets of paper and taped together. Each comes with a key, designed with traditional ink drawings and Chinese cut-paper designs. What better way to learn China’s geography? The physical process of filling in spaces with color increases the retention of information. This isn’t just for kids. Many medical school students routinely learn anatomy with a coloring book, and we think even the China-focused business person will enjoy getting his or her geographic bearings in this way. One of these days, we’ll add some notes on the cuisines of each province, another great way to learn about the different regions of China.