AN extra £2.5 million of government funding has been announced to create a Gaelic dictionary.

The dictionary, Faclair na Gaidhlig, aims to document the history, development and usage of every single word in the language.

In 2013, the Scottish Government gave £2 million to the project, managed by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), and has now invested £2.5m in the next phase.

SFC said many students and Gaelic speakers rely on Edward Dwelly’s Illustrated Gaelic English Dictionary, first published between 1901 and 1911, despite other resources being made available since then.

Sabhal Mor Ostaig, the national centre for Gaelic language and culture, on Skye, is working with Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde universities on the new dictionary.

Deputy First Minister John Swinney, said: “As minister with responsibility for Gaelic, I have been impressed by the work which has gone into this project to date and look forward to seeing it continue into its next phase.”

“This kind of collaboration will support our commitment to the Gaelic language and ensure it has a sustainable future in Scotland.”

SFC interim chief executive John Kemp said: “The new dictionary will go beyond language and into Gaelic culture and heritage. It will fuel the growth of Gaelic education at all ages and stages. As well as its relevance to today’s speakers and students of Gaelic, Faclair na Gaidhlig will be an important resource for many generations to come.”

The news coincides with MSP Kate Forbes’s second Scottish Parliament speech in Gaelic today.

Forbes is expected to say the Gaelic language “is not the preserve of any single party or ideology”.

She is also expected to hit back at claims that a new Gaelic school in Portree is “divisive”.