More than Words: Celebrating International Mother Language Day
Our native languages are more than just a means of communication; they are how we see the world, experience life, shape our identity, and stem from our culture and heritage. Every language offers a unique perspective of the world and many of us find a deep sense of comfort in our native language, allowing us to express ourselves in ways that no other language can.
Today on February 21st, we’re celebrating International Mother Language Day. A day to remind ourselves of how precious our native languages are.
Living abroad and not being able to speak your native language can be challenging. We asked 11 internationals and Dutch people from all across the Netherlands who go through life with a different native language how they stay connected to their roots and how their connection has changed living in the an area where their languages aren’t spoken.
“My native language is more like a comfort zone for me. Speaking it makes me feel relaxed and at home, especially when living abroad.
Living in the Netherlands has made me appreciate my native language more. I never really thought about it when I was in my home county, but after moving here and using English every day while also learning some Dutch, I started to notice all the interesting and unique things about my own language. I think it has actually made me enjoy and value my native language even more.
I don’t struggle with not speaking my native language every day because my boyfriend speaks the same native language as me. We talk about everything every day, so I still use my native language a lot. Just find a partner who speaks your native language! If you want to keep using your native language or learn another one, you can find friends, communities, or online groups that speak it.
I would teach you “算了” (suàn le)—it’s my go-to phrase in life! It means “forget it,” and you can use it in many situations, like when you want to say “whatever” “let it go”or “let it be.” It’s simple, but sometimes, it’s the best attitude to have.”
“I was actually born in Indonesia, and up until I was six years old, I did not speak a word of Dutch. I only spoke my native language, which is Indonesian, also known as Bahasa Indonesia.
Being able to speak Bahasa Indonesian means a lot to me, because it reminds me of where I come from. And it also reminds me that I am both Dutch and Indonesian. People around me often forget that I was actually not born here and that I was born in Indonesia. And that I also strongly identify with the Indonesian culture. So it’s a great reminder for a lot of people around me that I am culturally both Dutch and Indonesian.
The fact that I live in the Netherlands impacts my relationship with my native language a lot. Mostly because I just don’t speak it that much anymore and despite the Netherlands having a great Indonesian diaspora, I mostly surround myself with a lot of like Dutch people or other international people. So yeah, I do really miss speaking my language with a lot of other people.
I do feel like I struggle quite a bit with the language now. And it mostly has to do with my confidence level, because if I would meet someone new who speaks Bahasa Indonesia fluently, I think I would be too scared to initiate a conversation with them in Indonesia. I would just feel beaten up when I use so many English words in between. I simply forget the word that I wanted to use. I get intimidated a lot more now, because I feel like my skills are degrading in that sense.
I keep my native language alive by mostly just talking to my family members and mostly talking to my mom in Indonesian. My mom is fluent in Indonesian, and she also actively maintains her language by keeping up with the news. So I feel like with her, it’s a safe space for me to also practice my Indonesian because she also knows what I mean often when I don’t speak it as fluently.
If anyone wants to learn an Indonesian phrase that also kind of gives out a little bit of culture as well, I would definitely have to pick the phrase “Ya Ampun” which basically means oh my goodness or like oh my gosh or oh my god. Basically, it is used to express a sense of disbelief. But it’s like yeah, you can use it for so many things. I sometimes also use it for awkward situations. But basically yeah, so it means like, oh my god or oh my goodness.”
“My native language is the connection with my culture, very much related with the expression of emotions. It is the tool that I learnt to create reality, as any other language.
Living in the Netherlands made me be more aware of how language has an impact on reality; not only in the surface purpose of communicating, but in a deeper level in connection with values, emotions, behavior, and sense of belonging. I am glad that there is a big community in Groningen of Spanish speakers. There are different communities in WhatsApp groups, with different purposes, like writing, reading, exchanging services, family interest, etc. I like this.
Being more exposed in the Netherlands to Dutch and English, rather than Spanish, has made more aware of how Spanish is so much related for me with my sense of humor and fun, so much present in Latin Culture. I miss laughing, Spanish is full with double sense, playing with the meaning of words, more relaxed, spicier, more playful. I keep my native language at home. I passed to my children and my husband. I am proud of it, because it is a very valuable heritage. The words I want to leave you today are: “Disfruta la vida!”, “Enjoy life”.”
“My native language is very dear to my heart. It is me to my core. Even though my native language area is only 30 kilometers away from here, I don’t get to speak it often, because Frisian to me is mostly a family thing. It’s the language I love in, and it’s the language I get angry in, It’s the language that comes to me most naturally when I’m tired.
There is a lot of language shame in Fryslân, which has gotten better throughout the years, but I grew up thinking that my language was not as worthy. I grew up thinking that I sounded less intelligent for speaking this language. Now living somewhere else, not being able to speak it every day has made me more proud and has made me look into the history of the language. It’s a minority language; I have to keep speaking it to pass it on, to preserve the history. And I don’t want to give that up.
Now that I don’t have a lot of people to speak Frisian with, I do notice that I am forgetting words. Especially past tenses of verbs, especially irregular verbs. And just in general, you start to lose vocabulary that you don’t use every day. When I’m back in Fryslân and speaking with family, usually it comes back really fast. But, right now, if you would ask me to translate something, I might just not know the translation anymore, because it’s not something I’ve been using for the last ten years.
I do feel like I can’t always fully express myself anymore. Moving to Groningen as a student and then staying here after my studies, I have done significant growth in Dutch and English, and that is not something I can express back home in Frisian, but also my identity growing up, I can’t express in Dutch and English because I never learned how to express myself in that way. There’s always two wolves inside me now. One that is like the Frisian kid and then there’s the internationally-minded English-speaking person.
I’m a huge history nerd and etymology nerd so I love to tell people where words are coming from and tell people about the history. For me, that’s a way to keep it alive as well and to make people aware of that my language exists because a lot of people don’t even know about it. Especially talking to international friends, they usually get really excited to learn about this other language that is spoken in the Netherlands. And them speaking English already makes Frisian easier because they are closely related and much closer than English and Dutch. So, that is always a fun way to interact with it.
The one phrase I will teach you guys is “En no sa hâlde” (and now keep it that way), because growing up in Frisian culture means that you never think in superlatives. You never get a lot of praise because it’s a very egalitarian culture. This phrase is something my mom would always say after I cleaned my room. She never said good job. And I have learned in Frisian and Dutch culture to appreciate these kind of sentences because this is the way we express gratitude, even though it’s a little bit weird. It is part of our culture to just not be too overjoyed all the time.”
“I’m originally from Sri Lanka, and I was born in Sri Lanka. However, I moved to the Middle East when I was very young, and later on, I moved to the Netherlands. So this impacted how I learned to speak my native language, which is Sinhalese.
I know how to speak it because of my parents and my family as we speak Sinhalese together, but I never had the opportunity to learn how to read or write it, which has made me feel a little bit of disconnect from my own culture, and I’m trying to speak more in Sinhalese as I can see that I am losing more touch with my own language. And for me, although I don’t speak the language fluently, it still holds a lot of meaning to my heart. To me, Sinhalese is love and family because that is what I associate it with, and I am grateful to be able to speak the little bit that I do.
and I think the way I keep the language alive for myself is by speaking it with my parents and of course it does turn into Singlish at times but it makes me feel more connected and closer to then. If I had to choose and word or a phrase that I love the most it would be “අම්මා” (Amma), because I use it the most and it literally means Mother or Mom and it holds a very special place in my heart and I just love the word.”
“My native language means home to me. It is the bridge to my culture, to my roots, to my family and friends and even to myself. Now living here in the Netherlands I am forced to use more Dutch or English, at home, at work, so I do not speak it as much as before.
My biggest struggle not being able to speak it everyday is that I am forgetting words and expressions so that is very concerning . I speak with my mom ever day, we talk on the phone all the time and I also have a group of friends who speak Spanish as well, so we speak it very often.
The phrase I want to share with you is “mucho amor para todos” that means, lots of love for everyone, and I think we need a lot of love in this world.”
“My native language forms my connection with my homeland, my family, and my heritage. It is a big part of my identity – as a Palestinian, as our identity is being erased, it is an act of resistance to keep our language (and all its unique dialects) and rich culture alive.
Living in the Netherlands, it means I get to speak my native language a lot less than I would like. I get to speak it from the Netherlands when calling my relatives back home, but I don’t get to use it in my day-to-day. In the off-chance that I run into someone who does speak Arabic, they often speak a different dialect than mine (we can easily communicate of course, but it is not a 100% overlap).
It’s a struggle because I am way funnier in Arabic – I am definitely funny in English (and working on being funny in Dutch) but my quirkiness in Arabic is top tier and just doesn’t translate.
To keep the language alive I’m calling my relatives, listening to Arabic music, and teaching my partner different words (especially swear words, so he can understand what I’m saying during my road rage).
What I want to teach you today is Abu Kammuneh – it’s a funny way of calling somebody cheap or stingy. So “kammun” is cumin, and “abu kammuneh” is a neighbor who you ask to borrow some cumin from and they give you only one seed.”
“My native language one of the most essential parts of who I am as a person. Your mother language shapes so much of your world. It also means that I always have a part of my home (country) wherever I go.
I have been catching myself forgetting words in my native language, but I guess that’s part of the processes involved in speaking three languages on a daily basis. Other than that, my relationship with my native language hasn’t changed much. I guess that’s a privilege, in my case.
I don’t struggle with not being able to speak my language every day. I speak my native language every day with my sister, mom, and friends back at home. Which, again, is a big privilege and I try not to take it for granted.
Listening to music and reading the news in your native language is one way to keep it alive, I suppose, next to speaking to my fam and friends everyday. Reading/ listening to books in your native language is another way, because you’ll be able to maintain the grammatically sophisticated language patterns of your native language even better.
I’ll teach you “na baba ti hvarchilito” (на баба ти хвърчилото). It means (literal translation) “your grandma’s kite”, but it is used to call someone on their bullsh*t (maybe a bit outdated, but let’s bring it back?) and you’re actually saying you don’t belive them one bit, because the thing they are talking about is impossible/nonsense. I like it because it has a few of the typical Bulgarian sounds “ch” and “hv” and also I think it’s funny to imagine a grandma with a kite running around.”
“My native language is more than just a tool that I use to express myself; it is how I connect with my identity. It is how I connect with my culture, it is how I connect with my roots. And because I have been living abroad for such a long time, these things are very, very important to me.
I have been living here for the last nine years, I do speak Dutch, but I mostly speak English. I will speak English at work, I will speak English at home. Both English and Dutch have impacted my native language. They might sound a little bit off to an Italian native speaker or because I have incorporated foreign words into Italian. An example of this is the word ‘broodje’ or ‘broodje kaas’, which is what I have for lunch everyday. And even though I speak Italian, I will say something like “Oggi a pranzo, mangio un broce cas” (today for lunch, I’m going to eat a broodje kaas).
The biggest struggle is that you tend to forget your mother tongue when you don’t speak it enough, I know it sounds crazy, but sometimes I forget certain words and it will take me a few days in Italy to become fluent again. It sounds strange, but it does happen. It takes me sometime to re-become fluent in my mother tongue. And I do tend to forget a lot of words.
I try to keep it as alive as possible by speaking it. I have an Italian colleague, and I speak Italian with her everyday. I speak Italian with my family, I speak Italian with my friends. And I also consume a lot of Italian media. I follow content creators who come from Italy on social media. And that’s how I do my best to keep the language alive.
La dolce vita. This is an expression that you might have heard before, but maybe you don’t know what it means. It literally translates to the sweet life. But it doesn’t mean a sweet life, a good life. It is a reminder for people to enjoy the simple moments in life and make the most out of them.”
“My mother language is closely intertwined with my identity, my sense of self. It is a connection to my family and culture, so it means quite a lot.
I have noticed that I very often crave to speak Greek, exactly because I live abroad. It’s that familiarity, that easiness that comes with speaking your mother tongue. So, I really miss it.
I notice that I forget a lot of it. Words, verbs, even constructions. I used to teach it for five years, which was great because I had daily contact with it. However, since I stopped, it feels as if I’m ‘losing’ parts of it, which is tough to accept.
I listen to Greek radio every day. That’s my way of actively listening to the language while also following the news. And of course I talk and text with family and friends almost every day. Lately I’ve been exploring more Greek series and movies too.
Today I’m sharing the word ‘οικογένεια’, meaning ‘family’ because family plays an important role for me. Not only my birth family, but also my chose one. The people I surround myself with who I can trust and rely on. Οικογένεια means love, support, and acceptance, no matter what.”
“Persian, or Farsi, my native language, is a detrimental part of who I am. Literature and poetry are deeply intertwined with Iranian culture, everyday life, and hobbies. I would say that Iranians have a strong emotional connection to their language, and I am no exception. To me, Persian is the primary language I think and calculate in. My deepest thoughts and reactions are formed in Persian, making it an inseparable part of my heart and mind. I also secretly feel proud to know another alphabet!
As an international living in the Netherlands, I spend the majority of my time speaking English or studying Dutch. I am not as in touch with my native language or alphabet as I used to be. Because of this, I get very excited whenever I hear Persian being spoken on the streets or see it written somewhere, it makes me feel included and recognized.
Having spent most of my life in Iran, I have no difficulty speaking Persian at any time. Thankfully, I do not feel that I have forgotten my language or lost the ability to speak it in any way. However, I do miss having a wider range of vocabulary and expressions to fully articulate myself. Sometimes, I find English to be limited in describing different types and levels of emotions. This way, there is always a part of who I am that remains unexplained to the people around me who do not speak Persian and despite my reasonably good command of the English language, there are sentiments that just cannot be expressed in English.
I speak with my family and friends very often, and through our conversations, not only do we catch up, but I also get the opportunity to speak Persian again. I also love teaching my friends and colleagues as many Persian words as possible, helping to spread knowledge of this beautiful language.
In celebration of the approaching Iranian New Year on March 20th, I would like to teach the audience the name of this day, which is Nowruz. It means “New Day.” Nowruz marks the first day of spring and is a very special occasion in Iranian history.”
By embracing linguistic diversity, we not only honor our own heritage but share it with others too.
Thank you to all our friends who wanted to share their story with us today! If you’ve resonated with any of these stories, we hope they offer room for reflection and perhaps, action. If you feel like you are losing touch with your own native language or would like to learn it, do it. Who knows, it might open a whole new world to you.