International Mother Language Day 2026 - Theme and Notes

 International Mother Language Day

International Mother Language Day was proclaimed by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in November 1999. The idea to celebrate International Mother Language Day was the initiative of Bangladesh. The UN General Assembly welcomed the proclamation of the day in its resolution of 2002.

1. Historical Background

• Significance: Commemorates the 1952 Language Movement in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan).

• The Conflict: Protests broke out after the Pakistani government declared Urdu as the sole national language, despite Bangla being the majority tongue.

• The Sacrifice: On 21 February 1952, students at Dhaka University were killed by police fire while demanding recognition for Bangla.

• Global Recognition: Proposed by Bangladesh, UNESCO proclaimed the day in 1999. The UN General Assembly formally recognized it in 2002.

2. Current Context & Theme

• 2026 Theme: "Youth voices on multilingual education"

• Strategic Goal: Highlighting how the younger generation uses technology and advocacy to preserve native languages.

• International Decade: We are currently in the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–2032).

3. Indian Constitutional & Policy Framework

• 8th Schedule: Contains 22 officially recognized languages.

• Article 29: Right of citizens to conserve their distinct language, script, or culture.

• Article 350A: Directs states to provide primary education in the mother tongue.

• Article 343: Official language of the Union (Hindi in Devanagari script).

• NEP 2020: Recommends the mother tongue as the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5.

• Classical Languages (11): Tamil, Sanskrit, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Odia, Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, and Bengali.

4. Global Statistics (UNESCO Data)

• Language Loss: One language disappears every two weeks.

• Education Gap: 40% of the global population does not have access to an education in a language they speak or understand.

• Bhashini (India): An AI-based National Language Translation Mission aimed at bridging the digital divide in Indian languages.

5. Summary of Recent Themes

Year	Official Theme
2026	Youth voices on multilingual education
2025	Languages Matter: Silver Jubilee Celebration
2024	Multilingual education is a pillar of intergenerational learning
2023	Multilingual education – a necessity to transform education