Open Day at the Cervantes Institute in Budapest

The Cervantes Institute is not only the largest Spanish language teaching institution in the world, but also offers free cultural programs to promote and disseminate the culture of Spain and Spanish-speaking countries. This Saturday, September 10, the Cervantes Institute in Budapest is organizing an open day where visitors will be able to attend free tutorials and discover the activities of the institute and its unique library.

The Cervantes Institute was created by the Spanish State in 1991 with the aim of being at the forefront of the teaching of Spanish and the promotion of Spanish language and culture in Spain and in the Spanish-speaking world. More than 80,000 students study at the institutes every year worldwide, and the Budapest center has been welcoming students interested in Spanish language and culture since 2004. The Cervantes Institute in Budapest works with a number of private organizations and public institutions to ensure the implementation and success of its events.

Spanish is the second language of the world with 493 million native speakers – only Chinese is more widely spoken – and is the official language of 21 countries on five continents. In many countries, Spanish is a compulsory foreign language after English in the education system. In the European Union, for example, the number of students learning Spanish is increasing every year, while the numbers of French and German are decreasing. In 18 of the 27 countries of the European Union, including Hungary, Spanish is the most popular foreign language for people starting to learn a new language. Knowing Spanish means being able to communicate with nearly 600 million people around the world.

On September10, visitors to the Cervantes Institute in Budapest will be able to take part in free trial lessons and visit the library. In addition to the classic library services, the Institute also has an electronic library with a large digital collection, e-books, podcasts, Spanish-language publications, magazines and newspapers.

In addition, the Open Day will give participants an insight into the diverse activities of the institution. The Institute's staff regularly organize film screenings, concerts, literary readings, exhibitions and debates on a wide range of topics such as science, art, economy and sport.