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Spanish Language Day at the United Nations – April 23
23 April 2024 hora: 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
The UN also speaks with Ñ
Spanish Language Day at the United Nations” is celebrated on April 23 to raise awareness among UN staff and the world at large about the history, culture and use of Spanish as an official language.
The day was chosen to mark the anniversary of the death of the great genius of Spanish literature, Miguel de Cervantes. Coincidentally, the date of his death coincides with that of the most prestigious English playwright, William Shakespeare. Hence, both languages share the same day.
Growing interest in the United Nations among Spanish-speakers
The United Nations has always sought creative ways to promote the official languages in all spheres of its work, including, of course, Spanish.
The Secretariat uses formal and informal means to reach both the global public and its staff. From interpretation and translation services, to language and communication programs for its employees, to multilingual external communication services (web, news and social networks).
In the case of Spanish, there is also another extraordinary tool: the Group of Friends of Spanish, a team founded in 2013 by the 20 Spanish-speaking Member States to coordinate and carry out activities aimed at promoting the use and dissemination of Spanish in the work of the UN.
This group was created because of the growing interest of Spanish-speaking peoples in the mission of the United Nations, which has been impacting the activities of the Organization through increased and sustained consultations, interactions and demands from Spanish-speaking audiences around the globe.
Multilingualism or how to “reach the heart”
Nelson Mandela said that “if you speak to a man in a language he understands, the message goes to his head. If you speak to him in his language, it reaches his heart”.
This premise has been present in the United Nations since its foundation, especially considering its spirit of peace, reconciliation and understanding after a period of war.
Thus, the Organization opted for multilingualism in the recognition of Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, French, English and Russian as official languages, while English and French would be the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat, a factor that persists today.
If you speak to a man
in a language he understands,
the message gets through to his head.
If you speak to him in his language
it reaches his heart.
Years later, in 1999, the General Assembly recognized the need for a focal point for multilingualism issues in the Secretariat in order to harmonize actions and propose strategies to promote the use of several languages to expand the ideals of the Organization.
Since 2003, this function has been the responsibility of the Under-Secretary-General of the Department of Global Communications, which aims to promote greater awareness and understanding of the work of the United Nations through new multimedia platforms (television, radio, print media, videoconferencing, websites, etc.) and partnerships with stakeholders.
In 2010, the Organization took a further step towards multilingualism and decided to celebrate its cultural diversity by establishing “Language Days” for its six official languages.
The dates were chosen for their symbolism or historical significance for each of the languages.
A year later, in 2011, the United Nations advocated multilingualism as a means to promote, protect, and preserve the diversity of languages and cultures around the world, which in turn implied the promotion of respect for cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and broader and more effective participation of all within the Organization.