“Ekushey February”, or simply “Ekushey” (‘the 21st’ in Bangla), commemorates the day in 1952 when students of the University of Dhaka launched a nationwide protest against the imposition of Urdu on what was then East Pakistan.

Today, the day is recognised as a pivotal moment in the Bhasha Andolon (Bengali Language Movement), which laid the foundations of linguistic nationalism in East Pakistan and led to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971.

In recognition of the Bengali people’s struggle for their language and culture, UNESCO announced in 1999 that February 21 would be observed worldwide as International Mother Language Day. This year’s theme is “Multilingual education – a necessity to transform education”, emphasising Indigenous people’s education and languages.

East Pakistan was Bengali-speaking and was culturally very different from the Urdu-speaking West. However, the West was the seat of power and the birthplace of the Pakistan national movement.

As early as 1948, the issue of language became a major source of rising tensions. Dhirendranath Datta, a Bengali legislator, proposed that Bangla be given status as an official language (in addition to Urdu) in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. Wary of further Balkanisation of the nascent country, leaders from West Pakistan undertook a concerted campaign for assimilation of the East.

nternational Mother Language Day is celebrated every year on February 21 across the world to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity as well as multilingualism. It was first introduced by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1999.

International Mother Language Day was first announced by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in November 1999 but it was formally recognised by the UN General Assembly in its resolution of 2002.UNESCO believes in the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity for sustainable societies.

And in nearly 200 countries of the world, various peoples speaking various languages and belonging to various national cultures will observe 21st February as the International Mother Language Day.

International Mother Language Day is celebrated worldwide on February 21st every year. It is observed to promote linguistic and cultural diversity, as well as multilingualism.

Ismat Farzana                                                                                                                          

Senior Lecturer,

Department of Biology.

Cambrian School & College, Dhaka.

[email protected]

 Phn.+8801621808036