Chinese Language Day is celebrated on April 20 each year, a date chosen to honor Cangjie, a legendary figure believed to have invented Chinese characters. The day highlights the rich cultural and historical contributions of the Chinese language, one of the six official languages of the United Nations.
Established by the UN in 2010, Chinese Language Day aims to promote multilingualism and cultural diversity within the Organization and among its Member States.
What languages do you speak?
Visit our photobooth to show your language abilities
The photobooth will be set up between 15 and 22 April during working hours.
Directions: enter through door 40 (E-Building, 2nd floor). Move to the first floor towards the Serpent Bar. The photobooth is located close to the Cagi cultural kiosk.
Everyone working at or visiting the United Nations Office at Geneva has the opportunity to take a picture showcasing the languages they speak.
Take your colleagues for a group picture and demonstrate the linguistic diversity in your team!
Did you know?
- Over 1 billion people speak Mandarin Chinese as their first language, making it the most spoken language globally.
- Chinese was established as an official language of the United Nations in 1946.
- The United Nations celebrates Chinese Language Day annually on April 20, chosen to honor Cangjie, the legendary inventor of Chinese characters.
- Mandarin is a tonal language, meaning the pitch or intonation used when a word is spoken affects its meaning.
- The Chinese writing system is one of the oldest continuously used systems in the world, with roots tracing back over 3,000 years.
- Chinese Language Day is celebrated annually on April 20 to promote multilingualism and cultural diversity.
- Despite their origins in picture-writing, Chinese characters have been simplified over the years. The simplified version of the characters could be described as logographic. Every symbol either represents a word or a minimal unit of meaning.
- Before paper was invented, Chinese used bamboo slips to write on. The bamboo strips were bound together as scrolls. They form one of the earliest kind of books.
Test your knowledge of the Chinese language!
