UN Chinese Language Day
Next: April 20, 2027
Every character holds a story.
The story
Where it comes from
In 2010 the UN's Department of Public Information launched Language Days at the United Nations, one for each of its six official languages, to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity. The first Chinese Language Day was held at UN Headquarters in New York on 12 November 2010, and from 2011 it moved to 20 April, around Guyu, 'Rain of Millet', the sixth of the 24 solar terms. The date honours Cangjie, said to have been the Yellow Emperor's historian and the inventor of Chinese characters.
How it's celebrated
UN offices around the world hold events on the history, culture and achievements of the Chinese language; the first included exhibitions of Chinese books, calligraphy and painting, and a lecture on the origins of Chinese characters. Anyone can join in by writing a character with a brush, reading a Tang poem aloud, or teaching a friend to say hello: nǐ hǎo.
Did you know
- Legend says Cangjie had four eyes, and that when he invented writing the gods and ghosts wept and the sky rained millet; Chinese people have honoured him at Guyu ever since.
- Chinese has been an official UN language since 1946, and the General Assembly made it a working language in 1973.
- At the first Chinese Language Day, UN Under-Secretary-General Kiyo Akasaka showed guests a greeting he had written in Chinese, along with a poem by Li Bai.
Coming up next
- Kartini Day · April 21, 2027
- World Creativity and Innovation Day · April 21, 2027
- Earth Day · April 22, 2027
- International Girls in ICT Day · April 22, 2027
- World Book Day · April 23, 2027
- International Day of Multilateralism and Diplomacy for Peace · April 24, 2027