Russian is a native language for 170 million people and other 350 million people can speak or at least understand it. Thus, Russian is the fourth most widespread language in the world. Russian is lingua franca for more than 160 nationalities living in Russia. 30 million people abroad claim Russian to be their mother tongue. Additionally 180 million people study it. Thus, Russian is the language of global dialogue.
Russian is the language of Great Russian literature, and therefore it is so popular all over the world. Russian literature is a great contribution of Russian people to the treasury of world culture. It is impossible to overestimate it. Knowledge of Russian literature is a major component of knowledge of any educated person.
The first words in outer space were also made in Russian. On April 12, 1961, during the first manned spaceflight people heard human speech from the earth orbit, and it was in Russian. For nearly half-century the Russian speech sounds in outer space. The launching of the first in the world Soviet made sputnik and the first space flight of the Soviet cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin caused an unprecedented growth of interest in the Russian language.
And nowadays Russian speech constantly sounds in space, aboard the International Space Station. At present Russia launches more spacecraft, both Russian and foreign, than any other country. Knowledge of Russian is obligatory for non-Russian members of the ISS's crew - they must know Russian up to a certain level.
Taking into account the important role of Russian in strengthening the Russia's statehood, friendship and cooperation of the peoples of different countries, in the development of culture, science and education, the President of Russia Vladimir Putin has declared 2007 as the Year of the Russian Language. In practical terms Russia is aiming to support and to actively strengthen the status of Russian as one of the major world languages, as well to promote foreign youth's interest in Russian and Russia as a country with wide educational and business prospects, to encourage and support all those who study, know and love Russian and the Russian culture.
A plan of different events of the Year of Russian has been drawn up. Within the framework of one year dozens of international projects stipulated by the federal target program "Russian" will be realised. As it was defined by the President of Russia, steps will be taken «in Russia, and everywhere in the world where people know, like and appreciate Russian», to put this program into life.
The start of the Year has been given in Paris on January 24-27, 2007 at the international linguistic exhibition "Expolang-2007". Russia participated in it as a guest of honour under the motto «Russian - the first language of dialogue in space». This action passed under the aegis of the spouse of the President of Russia L.A.Putina and the spouse of the President of France B.Chirac.
International exhibition «Expolang" in Paris is the largest annual educational-linguistic exhibition in Europe focused on the development of international education and a language variety in the world.
Other different events are taking place in almost 80 countries: Days and Weeks, of Russian, festivals and international forums of scholars in Russian philology, scientific conferences, workshops and round tables on problems regarding the functioning and teaching of Russian abroad, to name a few. Centers of innovative technologies of training Russian will be opened at some Russian cultural centers which are being supplied with modern textbooks and methodical literature.
It was decided to arrange a competition of composition - essays in Russian at all Russian cultural centers world-wide. The participants of this competition are those who study Russian as a foreign language.
Participants can choose one of the three themes: «Russian - the first language of dialogue in space», «Russia, its language and culture in my life», «My favourite Russian writer».
A winner of the competition, one from each country, will be invited to Moscow to participate in the final function of the «Year of the Russian Language» which will be held in November, 2007. It will be an international get-together of more than 200 leading Russian and foreign experts in Russian philology, representatives of associations of Russian compatriots, foreign graduates of Russian high schools, the best teachers of Russian working in Russian cultural centers and foreign Centers of Russian Studies all over the world.
The Year of the Russian Language, in our opinion, is a fine opportunity to show the whole world the spirit and sense of the fundamental changes taking place in Russia and will become one of the central events of 2007.
Some events connected with the Year of the Russian Language have already taken place in Pakistan as well - that is an open lesson at the courses of Russian at the Russian center of science and culture in Karachi, a meeting commemorating the 175th anniversary of the birth of the prominent Russian artist I.Shishkin at Karachi School of Art, the Festival of the Russian Language at the National Institute of Modern Languages in Islamabad. And at last but not the least, on June 9th a very high professional Seminar on the Russian literature went off at the Russian center of science and culture in Karachi.
(Author is the Director of the Russian center of science and culture in Karachi.)
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