In commemoration of the International Day of Arabic Language , which falls on December 18, 2023, the Algerian Embassy in Astana organized an activity at the embassy headquarters for the benefit of the embassy’s local employees under the supervision of His Excellency Ambassador Kamel Fenniche and in the presence of the embassy’s diplomatic staff.
The Ambassador delivered a lecture on this occasion under the title “The Arabic Language, the Language of Poetry and the Arts,” in which he discussed the reason for choosing December 18 as International Arabic Language Day, which is the date on which in 1973 the United Nations adopted the Arabic language as the sixth official language in addition to its five working languages.
He also touched on the role that Algeria played in consolidating the Arabic language in the United Nations along with other Arab countries. The late President Houari Boumediene was the first president to speak Arabic in the United Nations General Assembly in 1974.
In his speech, Mr. Ambassador mentioned the role of the Arabic language throughout the ages in transmitting the innovations of Arab and Islamic civilization in various artistic and scientific fields to the world. In addition to being a living language, it is also a ritual language, which can contribute to the advancement of human civilization and to bringing closer viewpoints between people from different continents, civilizations, backgrounds, and backgrounds, in order to establish a culture of peaceful coexistence.
The Ambassador also pointed out the connection between the Arabic language and other languages, as we find that it intersects with it in many words, as a result of its historical role in transferring the knowledge of the East to the West and vice versa and in establishing dialogue between cultures in the past on the paths adjacent to the Silk Road linking India and Africa.
Also, more than 400 million people speak the Arabic language, which makes it one of the most widespread languages in the world, a language that learning it allows access to various cultures and peoples and to explore the depths of one of the most ancient human civilizations.
After the end of the lecture, the Ambassador opened the way for discussion and questions from the audience. There was a rich discussion about the impact of the Arabic language on all other languages and the necessity of controlling some Qur’anic verses in order to practice some Islamic rituals, which makes more than two billion Muslims around the world speak at least a little Arabic.