# Great Russian Encyclopedia

The Great Russian Encyclopedia (GRE; Russian: Большая российская энциклопедия, БРЭ, transliterated as Bolshaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya or academically as Bol'šaja rossijskaja ènciklopedija) is a universal Russian encyclopedia, completed in 36 volumes, published between 2004 and 2017 by Great Russian Encyclopedia, JSC (Russian: Большая российская энциклопедия ПАО, transliterated as Bolshaya rossiyskaya entsiklopediya PAO). A successor to the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, it was released under the auspices of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) after President Vladimir Putin signed a presidential decree №1156 in 2002. The complete edition was released by 2017.
The chief editor of the encyclopedia was Yury Osipov, the president of the RAS. The editorial board had more than 80 RAS members.
The first, introductory volume, released in 2004, was dedicated to Russia. Thirty-five volumes were released between 2005 and 2017, covering the range from "A" to "Яя" (Yaya). The RAS plans to publish an updated version every five years, although it may not be issued in print after the first edition.
On 17 June 2024 the project was suspended due to discontinued funding from the Russian government and by October 2024, its materials are being transferred to Ruwiki.

## Personnel and management
### Editorial board

Yury Osipov, a mathematician, President of RAS (1991-2013), is the GRE Editor in Chief and Chairman of the Scientific Editorial Board.
Managing editor is Sergey Kravets [ru], journalist, editor and cultural figure.
Also in the scientific editorial board are or were:
* RAS Academics:
Sergey S. Averintsev, Eugene N. Avrorin, Sergei I. Adian, Yuri P. Altukhov [ru], Zhores I. Alferov, Boris V. Anan'ich [ru], Alexander F. Andreev, Leo N. Andreev [ru], Dmitry V. Anosov, Vladimir I. Arnold, Sergey N. Bagaev [ru], Nikolai Bahvalov, Oleg A. Bogatikov [ru], Alexander A. Boyarchuk, Evgeny Velikhov, Vladimir A. Vinogradov [ru], Andrei I. Vorobyov [ru], Eric M. Galimov, Andrey V. Gaponov-Grekhov [ru], Mikhail L. Gasparov, Vitaly L. Ginzburg, Georgy S. Golitsyn, Andrei A. Gonchar [ru], Anatoly I. Grigoriev [ru], Abdusalam A. Guseinov [ru], Mikhail I. Davydov [ru], Anatoly P. Derevyanko [ru], Nikolai L. Dobretsov [ru], Yuri I. Zhuravlev, Nicholas S. Zefirov [ru], Yuri A. Zolotov [ru], Viktor P. Ivannikov, Vadim T. Ivanov [ru], Sergei G. Inge-Vechtomov [ru], Alexander S. Isaev [ru], Victor A. Kabanov [ru], Eugene N. Kablov [ru], Sergei P. Karpov, Lev L. Kiselev [ru], Alex E. Kontorovich [ru], Vladimir M. Kotlyakov [ru], Oleg N. Krokhin [ru], Edward P. Kruglyakov [ru], Alexander B. Kudelin [ru], Oleg Y. Kutafin [ru], Nikolai P. Laverov [ru], Viktor P. Legostaev [ru], Nikolai P. Liakishev [ru], Valery L. Makarov [ru], Alexander M. Matveenko [ru], Gennady A. Mesyats, Alexander D. Nekipelov [ru], Alexei V. Nikolaev [ru], Sergey P. Novikov, Yuri S. Osipov, Dmitry S. Pavlov [ru], Alexey N. Parshin [ru], Nikolai A. Plate [ru], Nikolai N. Ponomarev-Steppe [ru], Yuri V. Prokhorov, Alexei Y. Rozanov [ru], Valery A. Rubakov [ru], Alexander Y. Rumyantsev, Dmitry V. Rundkvist [ru], Gennady I. Savin [ru], Victor A. Sadovnichii, Alexander N. Skrinsky [ru], Alexander S. Spirin, Yuri S. Stepanov, Vyacheslav S. Stepin, Michael L. Titarenko, Valery A. Tishkov, Yuri D. Tretyakov, Kliment N. Trubetskoy, Oleg H. Favorsky, Ludvig D. Faddeev, Vladimir Ye. Fortov, Konstantin V. Frolov, Yuri I. Chernov, Gorimir G. Chernii, Alexander O. Chubarian, Vitaly D. Shafranov, Sergey V. Shestakov, Dmitry V. Shirkov.
* RAS Corresponding Members:
Boris A. Babayan, Vladimir I. Vasiliev, Piama P. Gaidenko, Rudolf V. Kamelin, Michael V. Kovalchuk, Nikolai I. Lapin, Sergey S. Lappo, Alexey V. Yablokov.
* Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences Academician:
Vladimir I. Fisinin.
* Russian Academy of Arts Academician:
Dmitry O. Shvidkovskiy.
* Russian Federation Statesmen:
    Aleksandr A. Avdeyev (Culture Minister in 2008–2012),
    Andrei A. Fursenko (Minister of Education and Science of the Russian Federation in 2004–2012),
    Andrei A. Kokoshin (Secretary of the Russian Security Council in 1998),
    Sergey E. Naryshkin (Head of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation in 2008–2011, Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation since 2011),
    Alexander S. Sokolov (musicologist, Culture Minister in 2004-2008),
    Sergey K. Shoigu (Minister of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation in 1994–2012, Defense Minister from 2012),
    Mikhail E. Shvydkoi (Culture Minister in 2000–2004),
    Alexander D. Zhukov (Deputy Prime Minister in 2004–2011).
* and also:
Alexei D. Bogaturov, Sergey V. Chemezov, Vladimir V. Grigoriev, Alexei I. Komech, Vladimir A. Mau, D. L. Orlov.

## Edition summary

Publication schedule and contents of volumes:
| Vol. | Title (translit - translation) | Publication year | ISBN | pages |
| - | Россия (Rossija - Russia) | 2004 | ISBN 5-85270-326-5 | 1008 |
| 1 | A (A) Анкетирование (Anketirovanie - Questionnaires) | 2005 | ISBN 5-85270-329-X | 766 |
| 2 | Анкилоз (Ankiloz - Ankylosis) Банка (Banka – Ocean bank) | 2005 | ISBN 5-85270-330-3 | 766 |
| 3 | «Банкетная кампания» 1904 («Banketnaja kampanija» 1904 - Banquet Campaign of 1904) Большой Иргиз (Bol'shoj Irgiz) | 2005 | ISBN 5-85270-331-1 | 766 |
| 4 | Большой Кавказ (Bol'shoj Kavkaz - Greater Caucasus) Великий канал (Velikij kanal - Great Channel) | 2006 | ISBN 5-85270-333-8 | 766 |
| 5 | Великий князь (Velikij knjaz' – The Grand Duke) Восходящий узел орбиты (Voshodjashchij uzel orbity - ascending node of the orbit) | 2006 | ISBN 5-85270-334-6 | 786 |
| 6 | Восьмеричный путь (Vos'merichnyj put' - Eightfold Path) Германцы (Germancy - Germanic peoples) | 2006 | ISBN 5-85270-335-4 | 768 |
| 7 | Гермафродит (Germafrodit – Hermaphrodite) Григорьев (Grigor'ev - Grigoriev) | 2007 | ISBN 978-5-85270-337-8 | 767 |
| 8 | Григорьев (Grigor'ev - Grigoriev) Динамика (Dinamika - Dynamics) | 2007 | ISBN 978-5-85270-338-5 | 767 |
| 9 | Динамика атмосферы (Dinamika atmosfery - Dynamics of the atmosphere) Железнодорожный узел (Zheleznodorozhnyj uzel - Railway junction) | 2007 | ISBN 978-585270-339-2 | 767 |
| 10 | Железное дерево (Zheleznoe derevo - Iron Tree) Излучение (Izluchenie - Radiation) | 2008 | ISBN 978-5-85270-341-5 | 767 |
| 11 | Излучение плазмы (Izluchenie plazmy - Radiation plasma) Исламский фронт спасения (Islamskij front spasenija - the Islamic Salvation Front) | 2008 | ISBN 978-5-85270-342-2 | 767 |
| 12 | Исландия (Islandija - Iceland) Канцеляризмы (Kanceljarizmy - Officialese) | 2008 | ISBN 978-5-85270-343-9 | 767 |
| 13 | Канцелярия конфискации (Kanceljarija konfiskacii - Chancery of Confiscation) Киргизы (Kirgizy - Kirghiz) | 2009 | ISBN 978-5-85270-344-6 | 783 |
| 14 | Киреев (Kireev - Kireyev) Конго (Kongo - Congo) | 2009 | ISBN 978-5-85270-345-3 | 751 |
| 15 | Конго (Kongo - Congo) Крещение (Kreshchenie - Baptism) | 2010 | ISBN 978-5-85270-346-0 | 767 |
| 16 | Крещение Господне (Kreshchenie Gospodne - Epiphany) Ласточковые (Lastochkovye - Hirundinidae) | 2010 | ISBN 978-5-85270-347-7 | 751 |
| 17 | Лас-Тунас (Las-Tunas - Las Tunas) Ломонос (Lomonos - Clematis) | 2011 | ISBN 978-5-85270-350-7 | 751 |
| 18 | Ломоносов (Lomonosov - Lomonosov) Манизер (Manizer - Manizer) | 2011 | ISBN 978-5-85270-351-4 | 768 |
| 19 | Маниковский (Manikovskij - Iznikovsky) Меотида (Meotida - Maeotias) | 2012 | ISBN 978-5-85270-353-8 | 768 |
| 20 | Меотская археологическая культура (Meotskaja arheologicheskaja kul'tura - Meotian archaeological culture) Монголо-татарское нашествие (Mongolo-tatarskoe nashestvie - Mongol-Tatar invasion) | 2012 | ISBN 978-5-85270-354-5 | 768 |
| 21 | Монголы (Mongoly - Mongols) Наноматериалы (Nanomaterialy - Nanomaterials) | 2013 | ISBN 978-5-85270-355-2 | 768 |
| 22 | Нанонаука (Nanonauka - Nanoscience) Николай Кавасила (Nikolaj Kavasila - Nicholas Kabasilas) | 2013 | ISBN 978-5-85270-358-3 | 767 |
| 23 | Николай Кузанский (Nikolaj Kuzanskij - Nicholas of Cusa) Океан (Okean - Ocean) | 2013 | ISBN 978-5-85270-360-6 | 767 |
| 24 | Океанариум (Okeanarium - Oceanarium) Оясио (Ojasio - Oyashio) | 2014 | ISBN 978-5-85270-361-3 | 767 |
| 25 | П (P - П) Пертур (Pertur - Perturbation) | 2014 | ISBN 978-5-85270-362-0 | 765 |
| 26 | Перу (Peru - Peru) Полуприцеп (Polupritsep - Semitrailer) | 2014 | ISBN 978-5-85270-363-7 | 767 |
| 27 | Полупроводники (Poluprovodniki - Semiconductors) Пустыня (Pustynya - Desert) | 2014 | ISBN 978-5-85270-364-4 | 767 |
| 28 | Пустырник (Pustyrnik - Motherwort) Румчерод (Rumcherod - Rumcherod) | 2015 | ISBN 978-5-85270-365-1 | 767 |
| 29 | Румыния (Rumyniya - Romania) Сен-Жан-де-Люз (Sen-Zhan-de-Lyuz - Saint-Jean-de-Luz) | 2015 | ISBN 978-5-85270-366-8 | 767 |
| 30 | Сен-Жерменский мир 1679 (Sen-Zhermenskiy mir 1679 - Saint-Germain Treaty 1679) Социальное обеспечение (Sotsial'noye obespecheniye - Social security) | 2016 | ISBN 978-5-85270-367-5 | 767 |
| 31 | Социальное партнёрство (Sotsial'noye partnyorstvo - Social partnership) Телевидение (Televideniye - Television) | 2016 | ISBN 978-5-85270-368-2 | 768 |
| 32 | Телевизионная башня (Televizionnaya bashnya - Television tower) Улан-Батор (Ulan-Bator - Ulaanbaatar) | 2016 | ISBN 978-5-85270-369-9 | 768 |
| 33 | Уланд (Uland - Uhland) Хватцев (Khvatsev - Khvatsev) | 2017 | ISBN 978-5-85270-370-5 | 799 |
| 34 | Хвойка (Khvoyka - Khvoyka) Шервинский (Shervinsky - Shervinsky) | 2017 | ISBN 978-5-85270-372-9 | 799 |
| 35 | Шервуд (Shervud - Sherwood) Яя (Yaya - Yaya) | 2017 | ISBN 978-5-85270-373-6 | 799 |

## Electronic version

In 2022, an electronic version, Great Russian Encyclopedia (portal) [ru] was launched at bigenc.ru, described as a Russian government alternative to Wikipedia. Some assumed that this will be associated with blocking Wikipedia or competing with it, however Russian officials disavowed this claim.

## Criticism

While it was widely recognized that the Great Soviet Encyclopedia needed a replacement, the need for a print encyclopedia has been questioned, since many other analogues have now moved online, such as the Encyclopædia Britannica and the Brockhaus Enzyklopädie.
Critics complain that many of the biographies, historical entries, and cultural articles are narrow and biased: according to writer and literary critic Nikolai Podosokorsky [ru], several of the articles are "quite superficial" and "the lists of references at the end were often extremely biased". While admitting that some of the articles in the encyclopedia were "excellent", Podosokorsky still stated that he maintained a generally negative view of the project.