Latvian-English-Latvian Electronic Lexicographic Resources of Legal Terminology

Abstract

The technological advances of the 20th and 21st centuries have played a significant part in facilitating information exchange and processing the worldwide community outreach. A significant achievement has been the development of electronic dictionaries and terminological databases that allow access to information from various sources and in different languages. Much has been done to develop Latvian electronic dictionaries in line with the requirements of modern lexicography; however, the available electronic terminological databases are not so helpful in dealing with domain-specific terminology as is the case of Legal Latvian and its equivalents in other languages. The aim of the present research study has been to examine Latvian-English-Latvian electronic lexicographic resources, their adaptability to user needs and reliability, focusing in particular on their treatment of legal terminology where utmost precision is required. The research reveals the need for a free-access legal terminology electronic database where Latvian terms have equivalents from different foreign languages with appropriate support information. Undoubtedly, such a database can be developed only in close cooperation between language specialists and legal professionals that would consolidate the stability and reliability of Latvian legal terminology and the respective equivalents in other languages.