June 6 is Russian Language Day: interesting facts, the best postcards and greetings

In Russia, Russian Language Day, or Pushkin Day, is celebrated on June 6. Russian Russian writer and poet Alexander Pushkin, who is considered the creator of the modern Russian literary language, is celebrating his birthday. In 2025, this date falls on a Friday. Izvestia tells about the history of the holiday and its importance for the popularization and preservation of the Russian language.

Russian Language Day in 2025: date, history of the holiday

The appearance of the Russian Language Day dates back to 2010. It was established by the United Nations Department of Public Affairs (UN), along with other holidays dedicated to each of the six official languages of the organization. English, Spanish and Chinese Language Days are held in April, French Language Day in March, and Arabic Language Day in December.

It was decided to link Russian Language Day to the birthday of Alexander Pushkin, whose works are well known in the world and have been translated into many languages. Such celebrations, according to the UN website, remind of the equality of each of the languages of the world organization, emphasizing the importance of multilingualism and cultural diversity for communication and maintaining peace on Earth.

In 2011, the decree on the annual celebration of the Russian Language Day was signed by the President of Russia. The date remained the same — June 6. However, even before this event, Pushkin Day was widely celebrated throughout the country. For the first time, celebrations were held in 1999 in honor of the 200th anniversary of Pushkin's birth. And in 2024, Russia and the world celebrated the poet's 225th anniversary.

What our word will be called back: the State Duma has taken up the defense of the Russian language

There will be fewer Anglicisms and barbarisms.

Russian Language Day on June 6: traditions and interesting facts

Large-scale celebrations on June 6 are held annually at the Pushkin monument in Moscow. The audience is invited to listen to performances by professional artists, reciters and take part in literary competitions themselves. Poetry marathons and literary skits, where the works of Alexander Pushkin are recited, are also held in libraries, museums, and concert halls.

In St. Petersburg, flower-laying and poetry-reading events are traditionally organized at the Pushkin Museum apartment on the Moika River embankment. Famous cultural and artistic figures participate in them. The theater festival "I erected a monument to myself not made with hands" is also timed to coincide with the holiday in the Northern Capital.

A large festive concert will traditionally take place in the Boldino Museum-Reserve, Pushkin's ancestral estate near Nizhny Novgorod. Readings, exhibitions, musical performances and excursions will also be held at the Mikhailovskoye Museum Reserve in the Pskov Region.

Celebrations dedicated to the Day of the Russian Language are also held in other countries of the world. They include concerts of Slavic folk music, contests for knowledge of the Russian language and literature.

Russian is the eighth language in the world in terms of the number of native speakers. It is spoken by more than 250 million people worldwide. It is recognized as official not only in Russia, but also in some CIS countries, as well as in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Russian ranks fifth in terms of the number of publications in international scientific databases. And in terms of the number of sites using it on the Internet, it is the second after English. In addition, Russian is used in 15 international organizations, including the UN, BRICS and OSCE.

Happy Russian Language Day: beautiful greeting cards and greetings

"Congratulations on Russian Language Day and I wish you to love the language of great poets, famous writers and great thinkers with all my soul. Let the Russian language know no distortions and pretensions, let there be no mistakes in your speech or in your life."

"Happy Russian Language Day! May his sound never cease. May there always be those who speak it and are proud to be its native speaker."

Vadim Shefner

<...>A word can kill, a word can save,
In a word, you can lead the shelves.

In a word, you can sell, and betray, and buy,
The word can be poured into stinking lead.

But there are words for all words in our language.:
Glory, Motherland, Loyalty, Freedom and Honor<...>