Greece’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister marks International Greek Language Day

Greece’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Giorgios Kotsiras has sent a special message in honour of International Greek Language Day today.

Full message in English:

“Greek women and men of the world, friends of Greece everywhere and fellow compatriots,

With a pulse of thousands of years and remarkable resilience, the Greek language has accompanied humanity for centuries.

As a result of this rare journey, there has been an accumulation of unparalleled lexical wealth, capable of interpreting the densest and most complex meanings. Serving as the foundation of every science and influencing many Western languages, the Greek language thrives within foreign vocabularies, participating in a timeless cultural assimilation.

Greek, following the phenomenon of linguistic evolution, renews and enriches itself, interpreting modern contemporary frameworks and responds to new needs. Thanks to its unique descriptive power, our language has the potential to function as a compass which gives meaning to a complex world.

9 Φεβρουάριου – Παγκόσμια Ημέρα Ελληνικής Γλώσσας 🇬🇷
February 9 – International Greek Language Day 🇬🇷

Δείτε το μήνυμα του Υφυπουργού Εξωτερικών Γ. Κώτσηρα – Watch Dep. FM @giorgoskotsiras’ message#InternationalGreekLanguageDay#Ημέρα_Ελληνικής_Γλώσσας pic.twitter.com/rcpF84stBd

— Greece in Australia (@EmbassyOfGreece) February 8, 2024

Friends, our era does not favour certainties. Reality revolves around a continuous series of small and large crises, prompting us to urgently seek mutual respect, justice, and harmonious coexistence. We seek words that give substance to the above concepts. And these words are Greek: Dialogue, Diplomacy, Democracy.

With these three words starting with the letter “D,” Greek words with a global significance, our country is campaigning for election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for 2025-2026.

To close up, I would like to refer to another Greek word starting with “D” with global significance: Diaspora.

From its ancient Greek concept to the present day, the notion and significance of diaspora have remained almost unchanged. Diaspora, is the dispersion of seeds, the journey of Hellenism’s values across the globe. Diaspora, a precious “us” that extends to the ends of the earth and tells its own story, always in Greek…

Thank you, Giorgos Kotsiras.