Days and Dates

International Translation Day 2023: Theme, History, Significance

September 30 marks the celebration of International Translation Day 2023. It is a day of annual observance and is celebrated by people and nations all over the world. The day provides an opportunity to honor to the work of language professionals, who plays a crucial role in bringing nations together. By facilitating dialogue, understanding and cooperation, translators contribute a lot to development and strengthening world peace and security.

September 30 marks the feast of St. Jerome, the Bible translator, who is considered the patron saint of translators. Therefore, the day was selected for observance of International Translation Day.

International Translation Day 2023 Date

Here you can check the schedule of International Translation day:

EventDateDay
International Translation Day 2023September 30, 2023Saturday
International Translation Day 2024September 30, 2024Monday
International Translation Day 2025September 30, 2025Tuesday
International Translation Day 2026September 30, 2026Wednesday
International Translation Day 2027September 30, 2027Thursday

International Translation Day 2023 Overview

EventInternational Translation Day 2023
DateSeptember 30, 2023
DayThursday
Declared byUnited Nations
PurposeTo raise awareness of the important role of translators in bringing nations together.

Also check: Most Spoken Languages in the World

Significance of International Translation Day

Languages play a key role in safeguarding cultural diversity and promoting intercultural dialogue. It also helps in strengthening cooperation, building inclusive knowledge societies, mobilizing political will and preserving cultural heritage. Multilingualism is also regarded as a core value of the organization by the United Nations General Assembly.

But at the same time, there is also a need to overcome the linguistic boundaries and thus maintaining good communication and understanding between the peoples of the world and language translators play a very important role in this. To celebrate the translators and their significant work, International Translation Day is observed every year on September 30

History of International Translation Day Observation

A resolution was adopted by the United nations General Assembly on 24 May 2017 that mentions the celebration of International Translation Day every year on September 30. The resolution identified the role of language professionals in connecting nations and fostering peace, understanding and development and was advocated for by several organizations, like Critical Link International, Red T, International Association of Conference Interpreters, World Association of Sign Language Interpreters and others.

The declaration was signed by eleven countries and September 30 was chosen to coincide with the feast of St. Jerome, the Bible translator. St. Jerome was a priest from North-eastern Italy, who is known as the translator of the Bible into Latin from the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament.

International Translation Day 2023 Celebration

International Translation Day is observed all around the world with various events, seminars and competitions based on language being conducted. All staff members and accredited permanent missions staff of the UN and students from select partner universities are invited to compete in the UN St. Jerome Translation Contest.

The contest will be for all official languages of UN (Arabic, Chinese, French, English, Russian, and Spanish) and the German language. Best translations in every language will be rewarded as well. As an individual, you can start learning a new language to celebrate this day.

Process to learn a language quickly

International Translation Day 2023 Theme

The International Federation of Translators (FIT) promotes the celebration of International Translation Day with a unique theme every year. On the decided theme, a poster designing competition is held and all FIT members are encouraged to participate. The theme for International Translation Day 2023 is “Translation unveils the many faces of humanity”.

FAQs

What is International Federation of Translators or Fédération Internationale des Traductors (FIT)?

FIT is an international association of translators, interpreters and terminologists that aims to reduce language barriers and maintain good communication and professionalism between nations.

How can I get a job at the United Nations as a translator?

Competitive examinations for language positions (CELPS) are language and function based exams comprising a series of skill tests conducted over a period of several months. To become a translator in UN, you need to clear the exam. Interested candidates can find details about the exam on the official website of UN.

What are some previous years’ themes for International Translation Day?

Every year since 2014, 30 September is observed as International Translation Day with a unique theme. Here are the previous years’ themes:
2014- Language Rights: Essential to All Human Rights
2015- The Changing Face of Translating and Interpreting
2016- Translation and Interpreting: Connecting Worlds
2017- Translation and Diversity
2018- Translation: promoting cultural heritage in changing times
2019- Translation and Indigenous Languages during International Year of Indigenous Languages
2020- Finding the words for a world in crisis
2021- United in translation
2022- A World Without Barriers

Simeran Jit

Simeran has over 5 years of experience in content writing. She has been a part of the Edudwar Content Team for last 4 years. She holds her expertise in writing about festivals and government schemes. Other than her profession, she has a great interest in dance and music.

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