On February 21, President Masoud Barzani and other top Kurdish officials wished a happy International Mother Language Day to all the ethnic components in the Kurdistan Region.

President Masoud Barzani underlined in a post on X “that the mother tongue is the cornerstone of authenticity, identity, national consciousness, and unity; safeguarding it is a national responsibility.

“Happy Mother Language Day to all Kurdistani people,” he added.

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani also wished the people of Kurdistan a Happy International Mother Language Day in a post on X. 

“The Kurdistan Region is enriched and a source of pride because of its diverse languages and cultures, where all components of Kurdistan freely speak and study in their mother tongue,” he underlined.

“Language is a fundamental and essential pillar of our national and homeland identity. The KRG reaffirms its commitment to valuing the Kurdish language and the languages of all components of the people of Kurdistan.”

In a separate post, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani underlined that residents of the region take “pride in the fact that the Kurdistan Region is a cradle of diversity and coexistence among its national and religious components, and of its different languages and cultures.

“We reaffirm our commitment to promoting and advancing mother languages for all – from the Kurdish language to the languages of the national components (Turkmen, Syriac, and Armenian).”

“Protecting the mother language means protecting the identity, rich history, and future of Kurdistan.”

International Mother Language Day is observed annually on February 21 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. The holiday was proclaimed by UNESCO in 1999 and recognized by the UN in 2002.

The day is not only celebrated in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, but also in other parts of Greater Kurdistan, as it underscores the importance of protecting the mother tongue amid ongoing attempts by regional states to assimilate the Kurdish people. Kurdish is not officially taught in Iran, Turkey, and Syria, despite large Kurdish populations in these countries.