15 Upcoming Holidays for Translators and Translation Providers in 2019

Lately it seems as though there is a day for everything. Are you a Sign Language Interpreter? You can celebrate on Sign Language Interpreter Appreciation Day. Enjoy tongue twisters? There’s a day for that. Always keep track of what language related holidays you need to be celebrating with this comprehensive list for translators:

4th of January — World Braille Day
World Braille Day is annually celebrated on January 4th, the birthday of Braille inventor, Louis Braille. The day recognizes his contributions in helping blind and visually impaired people to read and write.

21st of February — International Mother Language Day
International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21st of February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and promote multilingualism.

20th of March — French Language Day
The United Nations has established language days for all of their six official languages. The purpose of the language days is to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity as well as to increase awareness and respect for the history, culture and achievements of these languages. The dates for the Language Days were selected for their symbolic or historic significance in connection with each language: 20th of March is International Day of Francophonie.

20th of April — Chinese Language Day
This is the day that the United Nations established to celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity created by the Chinese language.

23rd of April — English Language Day
This is the day that the United Nations established to celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity created by the English language. It is also traditionally recognized as William Shakespeare’s birthday.

23rd of April — Spanish Language Day
This is the day that the United Nations established to celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity created by the Spanish language. It is also characterized by the death of Miguel de Cervantes, a great Spanish writer.

1st of May — Sign Language Interpreter Appreciation Day
On Sign Language Interpreter Appreciation Day, we come together to celebrate the work of sign language interpreters who break down language and communication barriers, from medical appointments to large conferences.

6th of June — Russian Language Day
This is the day that the United Nations established to celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity created by the Russian language. It is also the birthday of Aleksandr Pushkin, a great Russian poet.

23rd of September — International Day of Sign Languages
The UN General Assembly has proclaimed 23rd of September as the International Day of Sign Languages in order to raise awareness of the importance of sign language in the full realization of the human rights of people who are deaf.

26th of September — European Day of Languages
The European Day of Languages is 26th of September and has been jointly organized by the Council of Europe and the European Union. Its aim is to encourage lifelong language learning across Europe.

30th of September — International Translation Day
International Translation Day is celebrated every year on 30 September on the feast of St. Jerome, the Bible translator who is considered the patron saint of translators. You can see here our article under the Famous Translations series detailing St. Jerome and his accomplishment as a translator.

16th of October — National Dictionary Day
Dictionary Day is held in honor of American lexicographer, Noah Webster. In 1806, he published “A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language” that defined an impressive 37,000 words.

10th of November — International Tongue Twister Day
The history and the origin of International Tongue Twister Day are unknown. Celebrate it by practicing a few challenging tongue twisters or even organize a tongue twister competition with your family, friends or colleagues. You can come across interesting tongue twisters in English on MotaWord’s Instagram page, make sure to follow us there. Here is an example: “Imagine an imaginary menagerie…"

21st of November — World Hello Day
World Hello Day is observed annually on November 21st, to express that conflicts should be resolved through communication. To celebrate, participants verbally greet ten people or more on that day. Why not do it in your native language and have it translated so these strangers can learn something new?

18th of December — Arabic Language Day
This is the day that the United Nations established to celebrate the cultural and linguistic diversity created by the Arabic language. On this day, the United Nations General Assembly designated Arabic as the sixth official language of the United Nations in 1973.

Do you celebrate any other language related holidays? Let us know on social media. Don’t forget to mention @MotaWord, and we'll be sure to check them out.

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Citations: United Nations, Council of Europe, Famous Translators