In an online celebration, ESCWA marked Arabic Language Day on 17 December 2021, with a strong focus on the language’s scope and timelessness.
In the words of Nidale Noun, Chief of the ESCWA Conference Management Services, “Through letters and words, the language breaks the silence with a sound, with an image or a verse that preserves the presence of wordsmiths in their absence”.
The event celebrated the diversity and depth of the Arabic language "as an expression of history, science, art and life experiences", as noted by one participant.
Participants watched a video that presented the Arabic language from a different perspective, in its true aesthetic nature, reflecting how it is employed to "recall, warn, awaken and liberate”.
Under this year’s theme #InArabicIt’sSimple, Sara Daher from #Bilarabiya presented an Arabic proficiency test targeting public sector employees, diplomats and all those whose work requires them to write and communicate in Arabic. The test measures an individual’s ability to use easy and rich language to communicate in all subjects and at all levels.
In response to the question "For me, the Arabic language is..." participants' provided varied comments, linking the language to identity, a sense of belonging, religion, knowledge, the continuity of culture and civilization, and the eternal value of words.
18 December was the day Arabic was adopted as one of the official languages of the United Nations. Arabic Language Day is a celebration of multilingualism at the United Nations, which has recognized from its inception that in the beginning was the word.
