Europa's second title in this promising new Political and Economic Dictionaries series is sturdy, attractively produced and legibly printed in Times New Roman 10/13.5 with cross‐referencing in boldface type. It follows Political and Economic Dictionary of Eastern Europe previously reviewed in these columns (RR 2003/14). Like its predecessor it offers an overview of the current political and economic condition of all the countries in the designated region, in this case all those south of the Río Grande/Río Bravo (the border between Mexico and the USA) and of the islands states of the Greater and Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Falkland Islands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, are included. The 500 or so concise entries are alphabetically ordered from Acción Democrática (AD) of Venezuela to the late Williams, Dr Eric of Trinidad and Tobago. X, Y and Z have strangely defeated the compiler. For example, Zapata, Emiliano and Zapatistas, would both seem to have merited inclusion but neither are to be found.
Europa's publicity material asserts that this compilation, by Peter Calvert, Emeritus Professor of Comparative and International Politics at the University of Southampton, is “an essential guide … an impartial and valuable background to the region, vital for anyone interested in the current affairs, recent history and economy of this vast and diverse area”. Prima facie, this may seem a somewhat overweening claim. Topicality of entries varies considerably, only occasionally reaching beyond 2002. The volatile politics of Venezuela, for instance, are reviewed only to the election of 30 July 2000 when Hugo Chávez Frías was re‐elected as president. The recall referendum of 2004 is too recent for inclusion.
The “broad scope” of the dictionary “ranges over political groups (both legal and illegal), institutions, main government leaders and prominent individuals, trade unions, financial and trade bodies, ethnic groups, countries, territories and principal cities, as well as essential terms and concepts”. True, but inclusion seems here and there, haphazard and arbitrary, especially in the Dictionary's necessary historical dimension. Christopher Columbus, Simón Bolívar, Eric Williams, Che Guevara, Carlos Saúl Menem, Augusto César Sandino, have stand‐alone entries. Norman Manley, Alexander Bustamante, Antonio Maceo, José Martí, Nestor Kirchner, Leopoldo FortunatoGaltieri, Bernardo O'Higgins, Antonio José de Sucre, José de San Martin, José Carlos Mariátegui and many more – men of continuing significance – are, if mentioned at all en passant, dismissed with a throw‐away line or so within thematic entries.
Main country entries, often followed by a separate economy entry, range from the reasonably discursive and adequate to unduly laconic. Much greater detail is available in other Europa regional works of reference. There are some separate entries for major staple commodities such as sugar, copper, coca!, coffee, cocoa, but not for oil, fish, timber or minerals. Financial services are allotted four‐and‐a‐half lines compared to almost one page given to Cocalero. A banal, minimalist entry for socialism highlights the lack of entries for communism, Marxism, Syndicalism, trade unionism, Trotskyism, anarchism, ICFTU, WFTU.
Much of the Dictionary is taken up by directory style entries – even a page of International Telephone Codes (p. ix). Political parties, employers’ organizations, peasants’ leagues, banks, stock exchanges, NGOs, newspapers, press agencies are identified at varying lengths. Often, only contact details are given, sometimes with full postal directions. Other entries risk returned mail “insufficient address”. There are many organizational omissions, e.g. Fuerza Boliariana de Trabajadores, Federación Campesina, Unión Nacional de Trabajadores, etc. for Venezuela alone. It is invidious to expatiate on (and puzzle over) why an entry is in and another is not. Editors and compilers are entitled to a degree of subjectivity. Non‐Aligned Movement (NAM) four‐and‐a‐half lines, with no mention of Latin America? Platt Amendment, but no Spanish‐American War, nor Monroe Doctrine? Many entries might usefully have been allowed greater depth and perspective, e.g. the term Uruguay Round – four‐and‐a‐half lines only, which came into use long before the given date of 1986. The tone of many entries is somewhat bland and uncritical, with a great deal of “received truth” to them, as is inevitable, perhaps, given the reliance on official sources. Accuracy of data, and of translation, is generally good, though one questions the literalist rendering of República Oriental del Uruguay as the Eastern Republic of the Uruguay. No entry provides a bibliography or reading list. Most of the facts presented are available, in greater range, detail and topicality; elsewhere, and key topics such as Panama Canal merit very much more than six lines.
More a summary encyclopedia than a dictionary, this expensive compilation is useful as a preliminary, quick reference resource rather than as an “essential guide” to its diverse field. Scope for expansion and revision!
