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International Mother Language Day is a national holiday in Bangladesh. The resolution was suggested by Rafiqul Islam and Abdus Salam, Bengalis living in Vancouver , Canada. They wrote a letter to Kofi Annan on 9 January 1998 asking him to take a step for saving the world's languages from extinction by declaring an International Mother Language Day.
The day is revered in Bangladesh where it is a public holiday and, to a somewhat lesser extent, in West Bengal as the Martyrs' Day. [citation needed] UNESCO decided to observe 21 February as International Mother Language Day. [13]
Planning for the International Mother Language Institute (IMLI), intended to promote Bangla and preserve endangered languages, began in 1999. [2] It was inaugurated at Segunbagicha, Dhaka, Bangladesh on 15 March 2001. [3] Construction started on 6 April 2003, stopped with the next change of government, and resumed on 11 February 2008.
Bengali is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh, [10] [11] [12] with 98% of Bangladeshis using Bengali as their first language. [13] [14] It is the second-most widely spoken language in India. It is the official language of the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and the Barak Valley region of the state of Assam.
The Mother Language Lovers Of The World was established by Rafiqul Islam in 1998 with ten members in Vancouver, Canada. [1] In 1999, The Mother Language Lovers Of The World successfully got UNESCO to declare 21 February the International Mother Language Day. [2] [3] The Mother Language Lovers Of The World was awarded the Ekushey Padak in 2001. [4]
Rafiqul Islam (16 July 1950 – 20 November 2013) [1] was a Bangladeshi-born Canadian [2] language activist. [3] [4] He played a major role in achieving recognition of February 21 as the International Mother Language Day, proclaimed by the General Conference of UNESCO in November 1999. [1]
The Government of Bangladesh awarded Abdul Jabbar the Ekushey Padak in 2000. [1] The Bhasa Shaheed Abdul Jabbar Ansar-VDP School & College school operated by Ansar and Village Defense Party in named after him. [5] [6] Shaheed Rafiq-Jabbar Hall, a dorm of Jahangirnagar University is also named after him and fellow language activist Rafiq Uddin ...
To commemorate this movement, Shaheed Minar, a solemn and symbolic sculpture, was erected in the place of the massacre. The day is revered in Bangladesh and, to a somewhat lesser extent, in West Bengal as the Martyrs' Day. This day is the public holiday in Bangladesh. UNESCO decided to observe 21 February as International Mother Language Day.