Esperanto FAQ: Balanced, Realistic Information about the Language Esperanto and the Community
If you live in the US, you’re in an environment where language questions aren’t really front and center. And depending on your community, experiences, and work, you may never have occasion to really think about intercultural communication, and how people actually talk to each other when they speak different languages.
Esperanto has been around since 1887, but the number of speakers is relatively small. People generally discover it because of a general interest in languages and language issues. Sometimes it shows up in magazine articles or other media. And sometimes people just happen upon it on the Internet.
This question is very common, and the only real answer is “no one knows.” How many people speak English, or Thai, or Hungarian? How many people are vegetarians? How many people golf or play chess? There’s no way to do a headcount—there can only be very rough estimates, since there is no membership required or even an easily countable must-have item. In practice this means that the only languages for which you can accurately count speakers are small languages spoken in a limited area.
Several decades ago The World Almanac and Book of Facts published the number “two million,” and that number got repeated in lots of other sources. But it was never based on any real research or data.
Modern estimates of the number of actual speakers of Esperanto (not just people who have learned a few words or phrases) are in the range of 60,000-200,000. If you include “people who have learned a little bit of Esperanto” in the definition of “speaker,” then the number is significantly higher.
It’s likely that there are people who know Esperanto in almost every country in the world. There are more Esperanto speakers in Europe than in other places, but there are significant numbers of speakers in China, Japan, Brazil, Russia, the US, among others.
First of all, congratulations on asking these questions before you start learning Esperanto! You’d be surprised how many times people say “OK, I’ve learned Esperanto, now what should I do with it?”
So before you start learning, you need to do some reading about what Esperanto is, where it came from, why it was created, and what its actual status is in the world today. Esperanto is a complete and real language, but it was developed specifically to help people communicate with speakers of other languages and people in other cultures. The goal of Esperanto, succinctly, is “to break down and cross language barriers.”
If that’s not something that speaks to you or resonates with you, then you might want to look for another learning project.
Many people in the world today are interested in “conlangs” (constructed languages) as a kind of language or logic game. Esperanto is a little different from other constructed languages, because it exists for a specific reason, it has a comparatively long history, and it has a large speaker community. It’s possible to learn Esperanto from that perspective, but there’s really not very much common ground between people who learn Esperanto as a game and people who learn Esperanto for its intended purposes.
If you do learn Esperanto, you have access to a large body of literature (much of it available for free online today), access to lots of forums and discussion groups that involve people from different countries and cultural perspectives, opportunities to meet and interact with people who have similar and shared interests but who don’t speak your first language, and opportunities to participate in Esperanto events in different places.
You also gain a lot of insight into language, how it works, how grammar functions, and how English is not the norm for communication that most English speakers believe it to be. Many people also find Esperanto to be a “trainer language” or “easy first foreign language”, to gain basic skills of language learning without having to face lots of exceptions to rules.
There are such things as “artificial languages,” languages that are made up from scratch and don’t have any connection to other languages. One of the best known modern examples is probably Klingon. There are languages like Loglan and Lojban that were designed to be purely logical, and are made up of arbitrary parts. There was even an artificial language called “Solresol”, in which all the words were made up of the names of the notes in the musical scale (do, re, mi . . . ) —with the idea that the language could be sung as well as spoken.
Esperanto is usually called a “constructed” language. All the vocabulary comes from other languages (Latin/romance, German, and Slavic, primarily). And the grammar, while simplified and regular, is not generally unlike that of other European languages. There are similar parts of speech, similar ways of constructing sentences, and similar expressions. So you have words like “frato” (brother), “baki” (to bake), “hundo” (dog), and expressions like “Bonan tagon!” (Good day!). There are very few elements in Esperanto that are truly “artificial.”
So yes, it’s a “real” language. But it’s a language that was created in a deliberate way for a specific purpose, which makes it a little different from other languages you’re familiar with.
Esperanto was published in 1887, and the very first introductory booklet included short examples of literature. Dr. Zamenhof, the author, dedicated much of his early work after publication to producing translated literature in Esperanto (including Hamlet and the Hebrew Bible, among many others). People began to translate and write original works in the language almost immediately, and a vast amount of literature is available today.
The book Esperanta Antologio is a collection of the finest original Esperanto poetry from 1887 to 1981. It’s more than 900 pages.
There aren’t really Esperanto newspapers today, although in the past there were regular publications like Heroldo de Esperanto. But in the era of the Internet, there are numerous sites for news reports about Esperanto, the Esperanto movement, and news in general. For example, Libera Folio reports on topics of interest to Esperanto speakers (https://liberafolio.org), La Ondo de Esperanto (https://sezonoj.ru/) is a publication of general interest, and Monato (https://monato.be) publishes articles on a wide range of topics.
Several print magazines are available in Esperanto, including the monthly Esperanto (published by the Universala Esperanto-Asocio), Kontakto (published by TEJO, the International Esperanto Youth Organization), Monato (a newsmonthly focused on news in Esperanto but not about Esperanto, published in Belgium but with correspondents worldwide) and Juna Amiko (published by the International Association of Esperanto teachers).
There’s a lot of nonfiction written in Esperanto, much of it focusing on linguistics and language issues, history, and social and political issues. There are also biographies and autobiographies (such as the book Maskerado, by Tivadar Soros, the father of George Soros).
There isn’t a lot of technical material in Esperanto, since authors generally write for a broad, curious international audience with limited exposure to their field. There are dictionaries of specialized and technical terminology designed to help specialists discuss their field.
There is in fact a kind of “Esperanto culture,” but it’s not a culture that involves specific clothing, dance, and food. There’s no typical food an Esperantist would bring to a potluck dinner. Except that it might be vegetarian or vegan, since many Esperantists are vegetarians or vegans.
Esperanto culture is more linked to a common understanding and experience of certain events (like national or international “congresses” of Esperanto speakers), certain creative works (historically literature, but in modern times also music, YouTube videos, podcasts, etc.) that everyone has either experienced or at least heard about, different organizations that people might be members of (like the Universala Esperanto-Asocio, the World Esperanto Association), some symbols (like the green star), and language-related topics that everyone knows and talks about (like the use/non-use of the accusative case).
Those elements can’t be discounted, because they in fact connect people in ways you might not expect.
The first introductory book about Esperanto was published in 1887
- Esperanto has a more than 130-year history. After it was first published in the Russian Empire, the introductory material was quickly translated into other languages, and people in other countries began to learn and use the language. Within just a few years there were Esperanto speakers around the world, and a growing body of original and translated literature, journals, and correspondence. The first World Congress of Esperanto was held in 1905. At that meeting, Esperantists by consensus adopted the Fundamento de Esperanto as the unchangeable basis for Esperanto’s grammar and structure.
A relatively new article about the history of Esperanto is here:
https://theconversation.com/a-brief-history-of-esperanto-the-135-year-old-language-of-peace-hated-by-hitler-and-stalin-alike-186025
While some organizations and companies have used Esperanto, often as a way to stand out in the marketplace through unique or provocative branding, it’s very uncommon for organizations made up of non-Esperantists to use Esperanto to communicate, even with Esperantists or Esperanto organizations.
The one exception is during the annual “Universal Congress of Esperanto,” when some enterprising locals do use Esperanto due to the large number of Esperantists in one place—for advertisements, menus, and informational purposes. But this usually doesn’t last past the week of the congress.
The United Nations does not use Esperanto. The UN is fully committed to its multilingual translation model, in spite of the enormous expense and complexity it entails.
The Universala Esperanto-Asocio has consultative status with UNESCO, giving it the highest level of representation a non-governmental organization can have at the UN. However, the member-states tend not to be particularly receptive to NGOs in general, preferring to respond to their constituents at home.
Esperanto tends to attract criticisms, often from people who believe that the issue of international communication is already solved (by English, by another constructed language, or by technological means). For them, Esperanto is simply a distraction, something not worth wasting one’s time on.
On this page, we’ve tried to answer questions in a straightforward and neutral way. There are lots of good websites with information about Esperanto, but it would be best to avoid those that present Esperanto as the solution to every problem, or as something worth relegating to the dustbin.
For many, Esperanto is much easier to learn than
many other languages. First of all, Esperanto
is spoken just as it is written. Additionally, the stress of every word falls
on the second-to-last syllable. There
are no silent letters or other pronunciation quirks.
Second, the grammar is both regular and simplified. No irregular verbs, no grammatical gender
(you don’t have to worry if “table” is masculine or feminine), and only one
case to learn (the accusative, which marks the direct object and is always just
the letter -n).
Third, Esperanto’s system of word-building gives beginners a lot of ways to say
things using a smaller number of words. And speakers of Esperanto tend to be
exceedingly accepting of new learners and their more limited ways of expressing
themselves. They were beginners once, too
Right now, the best resource for a motivated speaker of English is the book Complete Esperanto by Tim Owen and Judith Meyer. You can buy it on Amazon.
Good online resources include Lernu!, which is available in many languages, as well as the Esperanto course on Duolingo, currently available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.
An older textbook that is available as a free download is David Richardson’s Esperanto: Learning and Using the International Language (available as a free PDF from Esperanto-USA). The annoted reading material in the second part of the book is especially useful, even if you’re mainly using another course.
While there are some people who have found work using Esperanto, they are an incredibly small minority. If you’re looking for a language that you can use professionally, Esperanto is not the wisest choice. But Esperanto will give you a better understanding the world, its cultures, and its peoples, which is likely to help you in your career, whatever it is.
Of course, listing competence in Esperanto on your resume may make it stand out to some potential employers.
Because they are interested in Esperanto’s unique quality of being spoken worldwide by people who want to meet others and learn about their lives, their culture, and their perspectives on the world. If you’re only interested in the Spanish-speaking world, or China, or the Arab states, you’ll do a lot better by learning one of those languages. But if you want to know people from all of those places, Esperanto might be a better choice.
Very rarely. And there’s really no reason for it to be. Students in US schools are lucky to learn any language, and with limited resources, Spanish is probably a “best choice” from an educational perspective.
Esperanto is a language people should choose to learn, not a language they are required to learn.
Esperanto doesn’t have the natural head-start that comes from millions of native speakers (or a place in the formal educational system to create millions more), but it is widely spoken and used—far more than any other constructed language. In that sense, it actually is incredibly popular. Since its creation, millions of people have made contact with people they otherwise wouldn’t have met—through postcards, congresses, and now through the internet.
But Esperanto isn’t spoken on every street corner, or even in every town. The majority of people don’t see much utility in being able to encounter new people from throughout the world. And that’s OK! They likely speak the language(s) they need in their family and immediate community—and if they don’t, they’re probably working on that language, with little interest in learning yet another language.
L.L. Zamenhof, the creator of Esperanto, grew up in a multi-lingual community where there were constant conflicts, and often physical assaults, among speakers of different languages (who represented different cultures). His vision was that if we all had a common second language, we could start to see “the other people” not as enemies or antagonists, but as siblings in the big human family. So it’s not just about peace—it’s also about understanding and friendship that leads to deeper awareness and empathy.
Esperanto’s core idea of bringing together people from different parts of the world has always been considered dangerous in closed societies, including in totalitarian regimes of all political persuasions. Esperantists perished in the gas chambers of Nazi Germany (although mostly for other reasons, such as their Jewish roots). But the largest persecution of Esperantists was in the Soviet Union, where in the course of one generation Esperanto went from being a favored means of communication with the outside world to a rationale for someone’s immediate execution by firing squad under Stalin.
Esperanto—due to its ability to create connections between people from different backgrounds—does threaten those who wish to control the flow of information, including those political leaders who wish to create enmity among different peoples. But it has no political agenda other than bringing people together, and Esperantists often heartily debate issues of culture and politics.
You can indeed, and this is really the unique value that Esperanto brings to the table. If you learn Icelandic, you can speak with people in Iceland, or people from Iceland who live in other countries. If you learn Igbo, you can speak with people in parts of Nigeria, or Igbo speakers who happen to live in other countries.
If you learn Esperanto, you can find people to speak and interact with in practically any country you’re interested in. You may not find a lot of Esperanto speakers, but you’re almost certain to find some.
It’s unclear what a “serious” language is, but Esperanto is definitely a real language.
Some people learn Esperanto and read, write, and speak it as a kind of hobby. There’s nothing wrong with that. Doing something as a hobby simply means doing something because you’re interested in it. Many people learn languages just because they’re interested in them. In fact, intense interest and enjoyment are usually required to learn any language—which is why so many people who were forced to learn a language in school don’t speak it well.
And while collecting stamps or coins as a hobby gives you a big collection of stamps or coins, learning Esperanto gives you exposure to different cultures, literature you might never have encountered before, opportunities to meet interesting people, and even opportunities for travel and study.
All natural and national languages are connected in some way with a specific country, region, culture, or people group. And so the language naturally becomes a medium for the values, goals, and interests of the people who speak it. Esperanto is “neutral” in the sense that it doesn’t have that connection to any specific country, and so is not linked to national or ethnic values, goals, and interests.
Think about the immense social, political, and economic power of languages like English, Spanish, Chinese, and Russian. Or think about the roles of French and Latin in previous centuries. That kind of power is competitive and divisive in nature—for one language to succeed, others need to submit to it. Esperanto seeks to equalizing and unifying instead.
There are articles written by people who think Esperanto is a failed project, or who simply don’t like the language for one reason or another.
But the answer really depends on what you mean by “failed.” Esperanto is alive and well in the world, with lots of speakers, a huge literature, gatherings and courses of different kinds, and an immense presence in the Internet.
If you’re an English speaker, you might want to try being dropped off in central China and then make your way back home using only English. The idea of English as a universal language is a bit of a myth, held by (of course) English speakers, who often want to justify their monolingualism.
Esperanto might not help you any better in central China. But if you’ve learned Esperanto, you have an understanding of different languages and different cultures, and may be better prepared to figure out how to get home using other strategies.
It’s also important to recognize that the idea of English as a universal language really means “the language of the rich, powerful, and well-educated.” It doesn’t mean “a language accessible and useful to everyone.”
In previous centuries, speakers of Latin would have considered it the universal language, and in the 19th Century speakers of French would have been in the same position. The current status of English is not necessarily a permanent thing.
Of course. But you should also evaluate their opinions with reference to factual information and your own experience with the language.
Esperanto per se doesn’t have political aspirations of any kind. Some Esperanto speakers may support the idea of “one world government”. Others may support strong national identity, but value the ability to communicate with people in other nations and language groups. Some Esperanto speakers are apolitical, others are political activists.
This question is a great one to pose to different individual Esperanto speakers. Many people have travelled—sometimes to places they thought inaccessible. Some people have found their partner. A small number have even found meaningful work (both paid and volunteer). But everyone who has spoken Esperanto for a while has found new friends along with new perspectives on our world.