The RAE will modify the meaning of ‘read’ in the Dictionary to include reading the Braille system

The Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) will adapt the definition of the term ‘read’ in the Dictionary of the Spanish Language (DLE) so that it takes into account people with blindness or visual disabilities who use the Braille system.

According to a document to which Europa Press has had access, the RAE plans to include this new meaning in the next update of the Dictionary.

Currently, the term ‘read’ is defined in the DLE as “looking over what is written or printed, understanding the meaning of the characters used”, and with the next update, it will be defined as “interpreting, using sight, touch or other means, the signs used in a written text”.

In this way, the RAE responds positively to a proposal made by ONCE at the beginning of the year, on the occasion of the 200 years of Braille, and coinciding with the upcoming declaration of Braille as intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO.

Last January, sources from the RAE told Europa Press that the request had “arrived” and was being “studied by the Institute of Lexicography (ILEX) of the RAE.”

ONCE then explained to Europa Press that they were making this request because they considered that the current definition is “exclusive” and that “it leaves out those who read with touch and braille characters.”

According to ONCE, it is “widely demonstrated” that, both through sight and touch, the same action is carried out and the same effects are achieved: “understanding the meaning of the characters used.” Furthermore, he adds that neuroscientific studies have corroborated that both types of reading activate the same brain mechanisms.

According to the latest Report from the World Health Organization (WHO), in the world, at least 2.2 billion people are blind or visually impaired. Furthermore, according to ONCE, currently, more than 285 million blind people around the world use the Braille reading and writing system to access education and culture autonomously.

The braille system is made up of six points with 64 combinations that are used to compose letters and numbers, write in any language, read sheet music or annotate chess games. In 2018, the UN proclaimed World Braille Day on January 4, the birth date of its creator, Louis Braille (1809-1852).