cultural heritage

In 2010, the United Nations introduced an initiative dedicating one day to each of its six official languages: French (3/20), Chinese (4/20), Spanish and English (4/23), Russian (6/6), and Arabic (12/18). The language days recognize the importance of global communication through multilingualism and cultural diversity. The UN first celebrated English Language Day on April 23, 2010.

English, one of the two working languages of the UN Secretariat, is often referred to as a “world language”, or the lingua franca of the modern era because it is so widely spoken. The U.N. also celebrates International Mother Language Day on February 21 and International Translation Day on September 30.

English Language Day aims to entertain and inform people about the history, culture, and achievements associated with the language. The U.N. selected April 23 for English Language Day to commemorate the celebrated playwright and poet, William Shakespeare (1564-1616), whose (speculated) birthdate and death are recorded on the same date. The day often features book-reading events, English quizzes, poetry and literature exchanges, and other activities that promote the English language.

If you’re looking for some activities to celebrate English Day, the British Council offers an English Day lesson plan for teenagers and adults for online or in-classroom lessons.

The British Council will also be holding a special live stream for teachers on Facebook Live on 4/23.

To learn more about the United Nations’ English Day commemoration and language courses, click here!

Best of luck in your classes and Happy English Language Day!

Donald Kinney
Kinney Brothers Publishing

The legacy of the Native American peoples and their language traveled far into the European and Asian continents brought by the Portuguese and Spanish as new world fauna, flora, and language. Many of these new-world artifacts were adopted and absorbed so thoroughly that we forget the novelty they once possessed and to whom this heritage is owed.

Take, for example the word tomato. The species originated in western South America and Central America. The Nahuatl (Aztec language) word tomatl gave rise to the Spanish word tomate, from which the English word tomato derived. The Spanish took the small yellow tomato to Europe where it grew easily in the Mediterranean climates. They also distributed the tomato throughout their colonies in the Caribbean and the Philippines, where it then spread throughout the Asian continent.

More vocabulary of Native American languages origin include:

Over half of the state names in the U.S. are of Native American origin. They include:

Familiar U.S. city names include:

Though considered extinct, the Algonquian language has been woven into our everyday lives; testament that language is a living legacy where every utterance is like a memory brought back to life.

I’ll finish with a quote by Ray Bradbury:

“Why the Egyptian, Arabic, Abyssinian, Choctaw? Well, what tongue does the wind talk? What nationality is a storm? What country do rains come from? What color is lightning? Where does thunder go when it dies?”

If you enjoyed this post, you might also be interested in the fascinating history of the creole language known as Gullah, the beauty of the Scots language, or the influence of Spanish and French in the English language.

See the previous or next Fun Facts About English

Audio stories from A Telling Story Productions are great for bedtime, travel time, or story time in class! Check out all the classic children’s fairy tales and secondary short stories that will be sure to keep your kids engaged and wanting to hear more!

English Day – 4/23

Fun Facts About English #45 – Native American Vocabulary