European Day of Languages 2027 is on Sunday

About European Day of Languages

The European Day of Languages promotes two related ideas. One is linguistic diversity: Europe's national, regional, minority and migrant languages are part of its shared heritage and worth protecting. The other is plurilingualism, the Council of Europe's term for the ability to use several languages to whatever level, rather than mastering one foreign language perfectly. The day encourages lifelong language learning for work, travel, personal growth and better understanding between communities.

According to the Council of Europe, the idea of a public campaign for language learning grew out of its 1997 conference "Language learning for a new Europe," the same process that produced the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), the A1 to C2 scale now widely used to describe language levels. The first European Day of Languages was held on September 26, 2001, as a flagship event of the European Year of Languages, which the Council of Europe organized jointly with the European Union. Millions of people in 45 countries took part, and in late 2001 the Council's Committee of Ministers decided to make it an annual event on the same date.

Within the Council of Europe the day is coordinated by its Language Policy Programme and the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) in Graz, Austria. The ECML runs the official website, which offers games, quizzes, teaching ideas and a calendar of events in dozens of languages, and it relies on national relay contacts in member states. The Council says the day has had its biggest impact in schools, and language institutes, libraries and cultural centers also hold events.

Sources: Council of Europe, Language Policy: European Day of Languages (archived 2024), European Centre for Modern Languages: European Day of Languages. How we check dates.

How to mark European Day of Languages

• Learn to say hello, thank you and goodbye in a language spoken by a neighbor, coworker or classmate.
• Take a free placement test based on the CEFR scale to see where your skills stand in a language you studied at school.
• Join a language exchange or conversation group at a library, university or cultural institute.
• Read a short book or watch a film in another language with subtitles in the same language.
• Teachers can run a language taster day where students and parents share phrases from the languages they speak at home.
• Learn something about a regional or minority language in your area, such as its history and where it is still spoken.

European Day of Languages dates