> for certain applications it is important to be able to get the from 
> abbreviated name to the long name and vice versa.

What kind of application?  I have a module where I defined my own dict that maps categories with their full names, but I'm not sure this feature is common enough that should be included and maintained in the stdlib.

If it's added, a dict is probably enough, but a script to parse the file you mentioned and update this dict should also be included.