On 26 September 2025, Europe marks the 25th anniversary of the European Day of Languages, a milestone in promoting multilingualism, cultural exchange, and language learning. First launched in 2001 by the Council of Europe and the European Commission during the European Year of Languages, the day has grown into a continent-wide celebration with over 1,500 registered events annually—ranging from school activities to international festivals, and even reaching beyond Europe as far afield as Abu Dhabi and New Delhi.
This year’s motto, “Languages open hearts and minds!”, reflecting the deep impact of language learning both on both an emotional and cognitive level, captures the spirit of the celebrations, which include a rich mix of virtual conferences, cultural quests, educational workshops and fun activities. Just some examples are:
- Sprachenfest celebrating linguistic diversity: Graz (Austria) hosts its 13th Language Festival with workshops, interactive stands, city language walks, and artistic performances, marking 25 years of the European Day of Languages
- a virtual event on language skills and jobs: The European Commission organizes a virtual event focusing on language skills as essential for future employment, featuring expert talks, exhibitions, and a roundtable discussing multilingualism's role alongside AI and emerging technologies
- A taste of Europe cultural food quest: In Kaštel Gomilica (Croatia), students compete by preparing cultural stations representing European countries, earning points for language use and cultural knowledge throughout October
- a Language Fair with Speak-Dating in Aarhus (Denmark): A language exchange event offers speak-dating, escape games, quizzes, and interactive activities to explore familiar and new languages
- Journées des Langues Juridiques at the Faculty of Law and Political Science of Montpelier University (France) - 5 days of immersion in languages and legal languages, with lectures in foreign languages, writing workshops, and cultural and legal language practice
- “Speak, listen, discover”: The Ukrainian Global School in Kyiv is celebrating with a week of interactive activities, including a “Language Tree” for younger pupils, country-themed quests, and a Jeopardy-style quiz for older students
- “Le pouvoir des langues” seminar organised in Tunisia by the Council of Europe’s Tunis office together with EUNIC.
To mark the anniversary, the European Centre for Modern Languages is launching a range of special initiatives including a ‘Languages open hearts and minds!’ poster competition and a collaborative project to create and perform a multilingual EDL anthem entitled “Voices of Europe”
A newly developed Motivation Manifesto, produced by a joint working group of the European Commission and the ECML, underscores the importance of motivation in language learning and identifies key factors that influence learner engagement - its promotional flyer is available in 27 languages.
For teachers, the 2025 EDL activity kit offers a practical resource filled with ideas for celebrating the day in classrooms across Europe.
As Europe celebrates this landmark year, the European Day of Languages continues to inspire people of all ages to embrace linguistic diversity and discover the stories that languages convey.