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Subject: International Arabic Language Day Fri 18 Dec - 23:35 |
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International Arabic Language Day - a celebration of 'unity in diversity'
Despite scandal in Morocco and complaints over Anglicisation of the UAE, Arabic is celebrated across the Middle East and beyond
Speakers, learners and lovers of the Arabic language gathered around the world to celebrate International Arabic Language Day on Thursday.
The day is celebrated each year on 18 December, marking the date in 1973 when Arabic officially became a working language of the United Nations, 28 years after the organisation’s establishment.
In a statement issued to mark the occasion Irina Bokova, director-general of UNESCO, hailed the role Arabic has played “in the flow of knowledge and across eras, on subjects ranging from philosophy to medicine, from astronomy to mathematics.”
Bokova also said the language is a symbol of “unity in diversity,” with the classical language of the Qur’an living alongside the many and varied dialects of the language spoken throughout the world, from Yemen to Malta.
Events were organised in countries throughout the Middle East and beyond. In Syria, a local council in the central province of Hama organised an exhibition of Arabic calligraphy at the Assad Hall for Culture and the Arts. A small scandal hit Morocco’s celebration, when the Russian ambassador told listeners at a lecture in Rabat that the Ministry of Education had requested that he speak in French. In Libya, the Education Ministry hosted a celebration in Marj, a small town in north-eastern Libya, featuring young children dancing and singing with several adults dressed as bears. The diplomat, Valery Vorobiev, said it was a “tragedy” that French is primarily used during government events, despite the fact that Arabic and Berber are the country’s only two official languages. Eager learners at an event in Qatar practiced the ancient art of Arabic calligraphy, writing their names in one of dozens of established calligraphic fonts. - See more at: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
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