MULTILINGUAL DICTIONARY OF DISASTER MEDICINE AND INTERNATIONAL RELIEF Dictionnaire de Medecine des Catastrophes et des Secours Internationaux Diccionario de Medicina de Catastrofes y de Socorros Internacionales
MULTILINGUAL DICTIONARY OF DISASTER MEDICINE AND INTERNATIONAL RELIEF English, Fran9ais, Espanol, ~f by s. W. A. GUNN, MD, MS, FRCS(C) Scientific Director, Vice-President, European Centre for Disaster Medicine Consultant to the United Nations Formerly Head, Emergency Relief Operations, World Health Organization Foreword by the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator Kluwer Academic Publishers Dordrecht / Boston / London
Library of Congress Cataloging In Publication Data Gunn, Sisvan Willia~ Aram, 1926- Disaster medicine and international relief: multilingual dictionary: English, Fran~als, Espanol, (Arabic) / by S.W.A. Gunn. p. CI. ISBN-13: 978-0-7923-2256-6 1. Disaster ~edlclne--dictlonarles--polyglot. 2. Disaster relief- -Dictionaries--Polyglot. 3, Dictionaries, Polyglot. I. Title. RC86.7.G86 1988 362,1'8'03--dc19 88-24071 CIP ISBN-13: 978-0-7923-2256-6 e-isbn-13: 978-94-009-2486-4 DO I: 10.1007/978-94-009-2486-4 Published by Kluwer Academic Publishers. P.O. Box 17, 3300 AA Dordrecht, The Netherlands. Kluwer Academic Publishers incorporates the publishing programmes of D. Reidel, Maninus Nijhoff, Dr W. Junk and MTP Press. Sold and distributed in the U.S.A. and Canada by Kluwer Academic Publishers, 101 Philip Drive, Norwell, MA 02061, U.S.A. In all other countries, sold and distributed by Kluwer Academic Publishers Group, P.O. Box 322, 3300 AH Dordrecht, The Netherlands. Printed on acid-free paper All Rights Reserved 1990 by Kluwer Academic Publishers No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system. without written permission from the copyright owner.
This book is dedicated to all those who suffer from disasters and those who bring succour in disasters
CONTENTS Foreword. Introductory note Acknowledgements. SECTION 1. ENGLISH Part I: Dictionary (English, French, Spanish, Arabic) Part II: Units and measures. Part III: Acronyms and abbreviations SECTION 2. FRAN<;AIS, FRENCH... Premiere partie: Dictionnaire franc;ais-anglais Deuxieme partie: U ni tes de mesure Troisieme partie: Sigles et abreviations SECTION 3. ESPANOL, SPANISH Parte I: Diccionario Espafiol-Ingles Parte II: Unidades de medida Parte III: Siglas y abreviaturas IX xi xiii 1 3 93 99 123 125 141 143 147 149 165 167 171
FOREWORD In recent decades natural, technological and other disasters have been increasing in frequency and magnitude, and the involvement of international organizations and professionals from different disciplines has been growing in parallel. By definition major emergencies call for outside aid and often international assistance. The many agencies and individual helpers from different countries, different languages and different specialties converge on the stricken site with the sole object of helping the victims, who are themselves of a different background and language. Communication among these people and a certain understanding of the varying terminology of the many professions and activities therefore become paramount if the difficulties of the disaster situation are not to be compounded with difficulties of communication. A common ground for understanding between doctors, engineers, meteorologists, nurses, nutritionists, planners, government officials, transport personnel and the many other workers involved in disaster preparedness, relief and rehabilitation is therefore indispensable. It is to this end that this multilingual, multidisciplinary Dictionary serves as an invaluable tool for the disaster manager, whatever his background and wherever he may be called upon to work. A precursor in Disaster Medicine, Dr. William Gunn has conducted numerous emergency missions for the United Nations and other agencies, and this Dictionary has been tested in the field and in training courses over many years. Thus, more than mere definitions, the several hundred terms clearly defined here in fact establish the standard vocabulary of disaster management in key languages and will be of great help to all those involved in emergency humanitarian endeavours. The UN General Assembly has declared the 1990s as the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction; this book is a most valuable contribution to that initiative and to the tasks of all those who strive to lighten the burden of disasters. M. Essaafi U nder-secretary-general United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator
INTRODUCTORY NOTE This book is divided into four language Sections - English, French, Spanish and Arabic. Each Section is subdivided into three Parts - Dictionary, Units and measures and Acronyms and abbreviations. The English Section constitutes the main body of the work, each entry being defined and its equivalent given in French, Spanish and Arabic. The terms are then listed alphabetically in the other languages, and their synonyms given in English, with direct cross-reference to the definition. The following abbreviations are used: Syn. : this term has a synonym, which is also defined; Cf.: compare with or see the term mentioned; Symb.: symbol.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to thank Dr. Sami Gerges (Egypt), Mr. Keith Jones (United Kingdom), Mrs. Colette Murcia (France), Mr. Francis Parakatil (Switzerland) and Mrs. Sylvia Pavel (Canada) for their valuable assistance in the various stages of preparation of this book. For the French section I am indebted to Mr. Hubert Joly, Secretary-General of the Conseil International de la Langue Fran!;aise, Paris, who also kindly gave permission to reproduce the pioneering Dictionnaire in this new discipline. The Arabic section is due to the expert collaboration of my friend Dr. A. M. Aly, formerly Chief of the Office of language services, World Health Organization. The Spanish section is based on the painstaking contribution of Mr. Alejandro Sancho, translator in the United Nations system. May these exceptional linguists be assured of my gratitude for making this multilingual dictionary possible. My warm appreciation also goes to my wife Jean, for the meticulous documentation, so essential to such a multidisciplinary compilation. For the terminology of conflict disasters I am thankful to my colleagues on the Greater London Area War Risk Study Commission and the WHO Management Group on the Effects of Nuclear War on Health and Health Services. Working with them on such humanitarian problems has been most gratifying. Under-Secretary-General M'Hamed Essaafi, United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator, has honoured this work with his generous Foreword. With my warmest thanks I should like to record my personal satisfaction at having collaborated with him over many years in our common struggle against disasters. 1261 Bogis- Bossey Switzerland S.W.A.G.
Erratum Page 68: Richter scale. Fifth dash: delete "The amplitude is three times that of 3". Page Ill: ISO. To read: International Organization for Standardization. Book Gunn: "Multilingual Dictionary of Disaster Medicine and International Relief". ISBN 0-89838-409-5