23 rd September, international day of sign languages

International day of sign languages, languages of deaf people around the world, is celebrated annually on September 23rd from 2018 onwards, after United nations General Assembly on December 19th, 2017 proclaimed December 23rd as international day of sign languages. More info here:

World federation of deaf (WFD) estimates that there are 72 million of deaf people worldwide. It means that the prevalence of deafness in general population is approximatelly 0,9 %. Most of them live in developing countries. Collectivelly they use approximatelly 300 different sign languages. Sign languages differ from area to area due to different cultures, historical background, etc. Sign languages are fully fledged natural languages and develop and change just like oral languages.

In 2020, the World Federation of the Deaf is issuing a Global Leaders Challenge. This challenge aims to promote the use of sign languages by local, national, and global leaders in partnership with national associations of deaf people in each country, as well as other deaf-led organisations.

More info on international day of sign languages here: https://www.un.org/en/observances/sign-languages-day