European Day of Languages 2019

The Council of Europe declared the 26^th of September the European Day of Languages in order to celebrate the diversity of languages. Linguistic diversity is rapidly decreasing, and disappearing as quickly as the much-discussed diversity of animal and plant species.

We currently know about 6,900 languages, about 500 of which are likely to disappear in the foreseeable future. It is said that every two weeks, one language disappears. Extreme predictions suggest that in 150 years, the only active languages in the world will be English, Spanish and Chinese.

Do you know Taki Taki?

English is believed to be the world's richest language, with 600,000 words. Czech has 300,000 words. The longest English word is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis with 45 letters, while the longest Czech word has 30 letters. Taki Taki, a language with only 340 words, has the smallest vocabulary. It is spoken in Suriname, a country on the north-eastern Atlantic coast of South America.

Languages are ​​fascinating, which is the reason why linguists and language lovers are fighting to preserve as much linguistic diversity as possible. The promotion of linguistic diversity is also the objective of the European Day of Languages ​​in Campus Hybernská and Lucerna Gallery.

Language school and speak dating

Campus Hybernská will be open for schools in the morning, while in the afternoon, there will be activities designed for parents with children, university students and the general public. There will also be the opportunity for linguists to taste food from all over the world.

From 4pm to 8pm, you can continue to Lucerna Gallery for Speakdating. The event is inspired by speed dating, and visitors will sit for five minutes with a foreign language teacher, and either practice a language they already know, or learn a few phrases in a new language. Apart from some major world languages, visitors will be able to try some less common languages, such as Sorbian, Basque, Breton and Irish. One of the reasons for promoting lesser-known languages is that 2019 was proclaimed as the International Year of Indigenous Languages by the United Nations General Assembly.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE EVENT

Date: 26/09/2019

◾9am – 8pm: Hybernská Campus, Hybernská 4, Prague 1

◾4pm – 8pm Lucerna Gallery, Štěpánská 61, Prague 1

Free admission

The event is organized by the platform Library of Languages of the Faculty of Arts at Charles University