The idea was initiated by l’Accademia della Crusca, a linguistic academy founded in Florence in 1585 with the aim of maintaining the purity of the Italian language.
In association with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the first Settimana della lingua italiana took place in 2001.
The initiative aims to promote Italian language and culture worldwide.
Each year, the event is launched with a different theme highlighting an aspect of the Italian language.
The Week of the Italian Language in the World is organised under the patronage of the President of Italy, who each year invites all Italian organisations, institutions, consulates and university departments worldwide to celebrate the occasion with a special event.
The 20th edition of the event is marked by the theme ‘L’italiano tra parole e immagine: graffiti, illustrazioni, fumetti’.
The Italian Language Centre (ILC), a division of CO.AS.IT. Community Services in Brisbane, will celebrate the week with two events.
The centre will host the fifth annual National Convention for Teachers of Italian in association with Anna Rita Tamponi, Director of Education at the Embassy of Italy in Australia, on October 24, 2020.
The free event will take place virtually this year, via Zoom.
The ILC will also launch the eighth annual Calligram Competition, open to all Year 2 to Year 8 students of Italian in Queensland.
With the slogan ‘Disegnare con le parole’, the competition attracts hundreds of entries and allows students to showcase their language and creativity skills.
You can find the program for the National Convention for Teachers of Italian here. For more information or to register, head to the website. Registrations close on August 8. For further information, head to the ILC website or Facebook page, or contact the ILC on (07) 3356 9764 or via email.
