Happy UN Language Day: Arabic

The United Nations designates 6 official languages. Major public meetings are conducted in these languages, and every official publication must be translated into all 6 for dissemination. This is different from the working languages of the UN (English and French), which is what internal emails, negotiations, or informal discussions are conducted in.

The official languages of the United Nations are:

  • English
  • French
  • Spanish
  • Russian
  • Chinese
  • Arabic

On 18 December 1973, Arabic was added as the sixth official language of the UN by General Assembly Resolution 3189.