Vitebsk residents wrote a Belarusian dictation on Native Language Day
Belarus joined the traditional international holiday in 2009. Patriotic and philological actions and events are held throughout the country, during which citizens express their love for their native language and write dictations. This year, dozens of Belarusian language enthusiasts gathered at the regional library in Vitebsk, including poets, writers, students, and ordinary people who treat national culture and heritage with respect and honor.
- I always speak Belarusian, I love my country and language very much, and I try to popularize it. For me, this is the meaning of life, so I decided to join the general dictation. It is natural for me to speak as our ancestors, outstanding writers and poets, known even outside the country, did. I want this to become a daily habit for all Belarusians, – noted Natalia Ermakova, a second-year student of the Belarusian Philology Department of the Faculty of Philology of VSU named after P. Masherov.
Together with her groupmates, she took part in a literary and musical evening that preceded the dictation. The girls read poems dedicated to the Belarusian language, and then, together with everyone else, wrote the dictation.
The text was read to the event participants by Yuri Babich, chairman of the regional organization of the Society of Belarusian Language, Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Belarusian Linguistics of Vitebsk State University.
Vitebsk prose writers and poets also performed at the event. No one graded the participants' work; everyone checked their own work independently. The main result of this dictation was not the presence or absence of errors, but the pleasure derived from the rich native Belarusian word.