English Language Day

The event was established "to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity as well as to promote equal use of all six of its official working languages throughout the organization”. April 23 was chosen as the date for the English language because it is the anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death. The greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist wrote 5 poems, 10 chronicles, 11 tragedies, 17 comedies, and 154 sonnets. They include the world famous Romeo and Juliette, Othello, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, and King Lear. Many people read his works in the original. Currently, English is the world language: over a billion people speak it around the world.