The Prague Manifesto
of the Movement for the International Language Esperanto
(Translated from the original Esperanto into English)
We, the members of the world-wide movement for the dissemination of Esperanto:
direct this manifesto to all governments, international organisations, and persons of good will,
declare our intention to continue working steadily towards the aims herein set out and
invite every individual organisation and person to support our efforts.
Launched in 1887 as the project of an auxiliary language for international communication, and quickly developing into a living language rich in nuance, Esperanto has for more than a century functioned as a link between people across language and cultural barriers. In the interim the aims of its speakers have become no less important and immediate. Neither the world-wide use of a few national languages, nor the progress of communication technology, nor the advent of new language-teaching methods is likely to achieve the following aims, which we consider essential for a just and efficient linguistic order.
1. Democracy.
A system of communication which gives some people a lifelong privilege but requires others to invest years of effort to attain an inferior level of ability is fundamentally undemocratic. While, like every language, Esperanto is not perfect, it is greatly superior to every rival in the sphere of equitable world-wide communication.
We assert that linguistic inequality results in inequality of communication at all levels, including international level. We are a movement for democratic communication.
2. Transnational education.
Every ethnic language is linked with a given culture and nation or group of nations. For example, a pupil studying English learns about the culture, geography and politics of the English-speaking countries, particularly the USA and Britain. A pupil studying Esperanto learns about a world with no limits, in which every country is seen as home.
We assert that education by means of any ethnic language at all is linked with a given view of the world. We are a movement for transnational education.
3. Pedagogical efficiency.
Only a small percentage of those who study a foreign language ever gain some mastery of it. Complete mastery of Esperanto is possible even by means of self-study. Various experiments report propaedeutic effect on the learning of other languages. Esperanto is also recommended as an integral item for courses in the linguistic awareness of pupils.
We assert that the difficulty of the ethnic tongues will always present an obstacle for many learners who would nevertheless profit by the knowledge of a second language.
4. Polyglot effect.
The Esperanto community is one of very few linguistic communities whose speakers are without exception bilingual or more. Every community member has undertaken the task of learning at least one foreign tongue to be able to speak it. In many cases this leads to a knowledge and a love of several languages and to a wider personal horizon in general.
We assert that the speakers of every language, big or small, should have at their disposal a real opportunity of acquiring a second language to a high level of communication. We are a movement for providing that opportunity.
5. Linguistic rights.
The unequal distribution of power among languages is a recipe for constant linguistic insecurity, or direct linguistic oppression, for a large part of the world's population. In the Esperanto community speakers of major and minor, official and unofficial, languages meet on neutral ground, thanks to a reciprocal readiness to compromise. This balance of linguistic rights and responsibilities provides a precedent for the development and evaluation of other solutions to linguistic inequalities and conflicts.
We assert that the huge difference in power among languages undermines the guarantees, expressed in so many international documents, of equal treatment irrespective of language. We are a movement for language rights.
6. Linguistic diversity.
The national governments are inclined to think of the great diversity of languages in the world as a barrier to communication and development. For the Esperanto community, on the other hand, this linguistic diversity is a constant and indispensable source of riches. Consequently, every language, like every other form of life, is of value in its very self and worthy of protection and support.
We assert that a policy of communication and development, if it is not based on respect for and support of all languages, condemns to extinction the majority of languages in the world. We are a movement for linguistic diversity.
7. Human emancipation.
Every language liberates and imprisons its speakers, providing them with the ability to communicate among themselves, hindering communication with others. A planned and universal organ of communication, Esperanto is one of the great functioning projects for human emancipation - a project to enable every person to participate as an individual in the community of the human race, with firm roots in their local cultural and linguistic identity, but not limited by them.
We assert that the exclusive use of national languages inevitably sets up barriers against the freedoms of self-expression, communication and association. We are a movement for human emancipation.