April 20: UN Chinese Language Day

Every year, on April 20, the United Nations Chinese Language Day is observed. The day is observed to pay tribute to Cangjie. Cangjie is a mythical figure who invented Chinese Characters.

The first UN Chinese Language Day was observed in 2010.

About Cangjie

The legend in China is believed to have four eyes. Also, it is believed that when the legend invented the Chinese characters the deities and ghosts cried and millet rain occurred.

United Nations

The United Nations celebrate Language days to celebrate cultural diversity and multilingualism. The Chinese language was set as one of the official languages in the United Nations in 1946. However, Chinese was included as the working language in the UN in 1971.

Official Language of the UN

There are six official languages of the UN. They are Arabic, English, Chinese, Russian, Spanish and French.

Working language of the UN

Initially, English and French were established as working languages of the UN. Later, other languages such as Chinese, Russian, Arabic and Spanish were added to the list.

Month: Current Affairs - April, 2020