The International Greek Language Day Celebration in Washington

On Saturday February 8, Washington, D.C. celebrated the International Greek Language Day with great success. The Event was attended by the Consul of Greece Michail Skopelitis, the Consul of the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus, Constantinos Constantinou, other officials from the Greek Embassy, members of Greek-American organizations, teachers and students of Greek Schools of the Washington area. The event  which was organized by the Hellenic Society Prometheas, under the Auspices of the Embassy of Greece, took place at the Founders’ Hall of St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Bethesda, Maryland.

Prometheas’ President Mr. Yannis Yamanis, in his welcoming remarks, mentioned that the Greek Language Day celebration was voted by the Greek Parliament in 2017, however the idea for this celebration  belonged to the Greeks of the Diaspora and in particular to the past President of the Association of Greek Communities in Italy,  Professor Yannis Korinthios.

Main speaker, Dr. Polyvia Parara, Professor of Hellenic Studies at the University of Maryland, spoke on “The Modernity of the Greek Language.”  In her speech, Dr Parara analyzed words and concepts of the Greek language that do not exist in other languages and remain untranslatable because they were not substantiated and conceptualized anywhere else beyond the Greek world. Since these concepts lead societies to greater citizen participation and freedom, they make the Greek language very modern today.

Presenter of the program Mrs. Elina Karmokolias, showed a video by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, titled “Why I learn Greek,”  about  the celebration of the International Greek Language Day in various countries of the world.  The event ended with the song “Glossolalia” by Pantelis Thalassinos and a reception.

It is worth noting that three important American Organizations:  The Harvard’s Center for Hellenic Studies, Dumbarton Oaks and the Library of Congress honored the International Greek Language Day, with articles on Harvard’s blogpost, which offered a brief historical glimpse into the language from antiquity to the present, and a presentation of Greek language highlights from the collections of the three institutions.