Elaboration of a database in XML for a Bribri–Spanish Spanish–Bribri dictionary on the web

Abstract

This article describes the elaboration of a database in XML for a Bribri–Spanish Spanish–Bribri dictionary that can be consulted through a dynamic HTML page on the web. The paper focuses on the different solutions taken regarding the structure of the XML trees, the information elements included and the incorporation of links and redirects between distinct entries. The database consists of two XML documents, one for each direction of the dictionary. In both structures, the entries constitute the first level below the root element. Each entry can in turn contain any number of acceptations, which include the information pertaining to the microstructure. The redirects, used in order to avoid data redundancy, are registered at the level of the acceptations and are displayed as soft or hard links on the web page, depending on certain factors. The XML structure presented here can easily be adapted for other digital dictionaries and the visualization of the data is completely customizable.