Unesco Cities of Literature Celebrate International Mother Language Day
Manchester City of Literature leads the UNESCO Cities of Literature on International Mother Language Day celebrations, and for the first time Manchester welcomes Voiced: The Festival of Endangered Languages to the programme - a partnership which has prompted a collaborative digital exhibition titled No Tongues Left to Chant.
Hosted by the Manchester City of Literature website, the exhibition is an international collaboration, featuring poems in 16 endangered and vulnerable languages including those by poets from cities from across the global UNESCO Cities of Literature Network.
Languages featured in the exhibition include: Belarusian, Frisian, Gaelic, Irish, Kaili, Kattunayakan, Ladino, Low German, Makassarese, Mixtec, Scots, Welsh, Yiddish, Zapotec and even two languages that currently have no first-language speakers remaining: Wendat and Lushootseed.
You can view elaborate scripts and songs, illustrations and pictographic language as well as watch videos and hear recordings of some pieces read by the authors. The exhibition also features contributions from The John Rylands Research Institute and Library’s extensive digital collections in Manchester.
All the works in the exhibition are shared with huge thanks to the authors, translators, curators and Creative Cities to draw attention to how precious languages are to strengthen culture and the protection they need to continue.
Alongside this exhibition, Cities of Literature are marking International Mother Language Day 2026 in their own unique way. Dunedin, New Zealand, have shared ‘Layers of identity,’ a collection of podcasts showcasing work from 15 young writers and orators from Ōtepoti as they journey through whakapapa, culture and belonging. The podcasts celebrate the power of rangatahi identity and storytelling, and can be listened to online.
Jakarta City of Literature will bring together poets from across Indonesia for a series of online poetry readings shared on their social media from morning to evening on 21st February. Indonesia is one of the most linguistically diverse countries in the world, and the readings will highlight the richness of mother languages from across the archipelago.
Kozhikode City of Literature leads Kerala’s celebrations with a range of events, including an Endangered Languages Forum, public ‘Wall of Words’ mural and Script workshops for children to help them understand the ancient scripts that carved Kerala’s history.
In Gothenburg, a city rich in diverse language communities, the celebrations include a Mother Language Day celebration centered around the city's ICORN writer in residence, Pranto Palash, a journalist and poet writing in bengali. In arrangement by Bergsjöns kulturhus.
Worldwide there are around 7000 languages in use, and many of these are indigenous. Sadly many languages are falling out of use, reflecting the vulnerable situation of traditional cultures worldwide.
In 2022 UNESCO marked a Decade of Indigenous Languages to draw global attention to the critical situation of many indigenous languages.
To find out more about the events mentioned above, and how the Cities of Literature Network is celebrating International Mother Language day this year, please visit the Manchester City of Literature International Mother Language Day webpage.
Manchester UNESCO City of Literature
Manchester was successful in its bid to join UNESCO’s worldwide Creative Cities network as a City of Literature in 2017. Joining 60 other Cities of Literature, a consortium including Manchester City Council, the Universities, Manchester Literature Festival plus a range of the city’s writers, publishers and literary organisations formed to enable this to happen. Manchester City of Literature is a charity that manages the UNESCO designation on behalf of over fifty partner organisations. Our vision is to create an innovative, distinctive, equitable, globally connected city of reading and writing. We want Manchester to be a city where diverse voices are celebrated, creative talent and industries are nurtured and where literary activity changes lives.
UNESCO Cities of Literature
About the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN): Established in 2004, the UCCN aims to foster collaboration among cities that recognize creativity as a crucial element in achieving sustainable urban development. Worldwide, 408 cities are part of this network, united in their pursuit of a shared goal: integrating creativity and cultural industries into their local development strategies while actively cooperating on the global stage. The Network encompasses eight diverse creative fields: Architecture, Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts, and Music. Sixty-three UNESCO Creative Cities of Literature from 46 countries are currently members of the Network, diligently working together to harness the transformative power of literature in fostering sustainable and inclusive societies.
Voiced Festival of Endangered Languages
Through poetry, performance, talks, live events and visual art, Voiced festival brings together a remarkable line-up of artists whose work marks the vast impact art has on language and language has on art. Co-curated by Sam Winston, an artist whose interdisciplinary practice explores language not only as a carrier of messages but also as a visual form in and of itself, and Chris McCabe, a poet, novelist, artist and Head of the National Poetry Library, the festival promises to introduce audiences to new ways of thinking about and engaging with language.