Esperanto is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it is intended to be a universal second language for international communication, or "the international language". Zamenhof first described the language in Dr. Esperanto's International Language, which he published under the pseudonym Doktoro Esperanto. Early adopters of the language liked the name Esperanto and soon used it to describe his language. The word esperanto translates into English as "one who hopes".
Esperantujo or Esperantio is the community of speakers of the Esperanto language and their culture, as well as the places and institutions where the language is used. The term is used "as if it were a country."
The World Esperanto Youth Organization is an organization dedicated to supporting young Esperanto speakers around the world and promote the use of Esperanto. TEJO was founded in 1938 as the Tutmonda Junular-Organizo and took its current name in 1952. In 1956, TEJO became the youth section of the Universal Esperanto Association (UEA). In 1971, the finances and administration of TEJO were fully integrated into those of UEA.
The Universal Esperanto Association, also known as the World Esperanto Association, is the largest international organization of Esperanto speakers, with 5,501 individual members in 121 countries and 9,215 through national associations in 214 countries. In addition to individual members, 70 national Esperanto organizations are affiliated with UEA. Its current president is Prof. Duncan Charters. The magazine Esperanto is the main publication to inform UEA members about everything happening in the Esperanto community.
The International Youth Congress is the largest annual meeting of young Esperantists in the world. The participants come from all over the world for one week, and they usually number around 300, although there has been a congress with more than 1000 attendees before. The congress takes place in a different country every year and is organized by the World Esperanto Youth Organization, the youth wing of the Universal Esperanto Association. Both the IJK and the World Esperanto Congress take place each summer, usually in consecutive weeks but rarely in the same country.
Esperanto II or Esperanto 2 was a reform of Esperanto proposed by René de Saussure in 1937, the last of a long series of such proposals beginning with a 1907 response to Ido with a project called Lingwo Internaciona, later called Antido 1. Esperanto II was one of several languages investigated by the International Auxiliary Language Association, the linguistic research body that eventually standardized and presented Interlingua de IALA.
The Baháʼí Esperanto League (BEL) is the official organization of Baháʼís who are Esperantists. It was founded on 19 March 1973 with the approval of the Universal House of Justice.
The Canadian Esperanto Association is a registered educational charity whose objective is to advance the education of Esperanto among the Canadian public.
Rüdiger Eichholz, was a Canadian physicist and Esperantist and a member of the Esperanto Academy. He is best known for publishing the "Esperanto picture dictionary" (1988) and a massive anthology co-edited with his wife, Esperanto in the Modern World (1982).
Osmo Buller is a Finnish Esperantist is the General Director of the Universal Esperanto Association.
Harry William Holmes OBE, was a board member and honorary president of the World Esperanto Association. He served as a staff officer of the British Ministry of Defence with the military rank of Brigadier and was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1955 in acknowledgment of services to Great Britain. Holmes was also a Freemason.
Hans Jakob Notz was a German-born Swiss Esperantist. His real name was Franz.
The World Esperantist Vegetarian Association is a voluntary association of Esperanto-speaking vegetarians. Founded in 1908, the group's working language is Esperanto, and it is the oldest international organization of vegetarians that is currently active. TEVA published a journal, Vegetarano ("Vegetarian") from 1914 to 1932, revived in 2009 as Esperantista Vegetarano, and has also operated a spirited Internet mailing list through Yahoo! Groups since 2005.
Medicina Internacia Revuo is the official organ of Universala Medicina Esperanto Asocio, an organization that gathers physicians, pharmacists, and other medical professionals who have a working knowledge of Esperanto. The twice-yearly journal publishes articles that have undergone peer review and that are written in various languages, including English and Polish; abstracts are provided in English and Esperanto. The journal publishes broadly within the medical sciences, has an internationally renowned board of editors, and is included in the Index Copernicus database. The journal is available gold open access, but no author fees are charged.
Grégoire Maertens is a Belgian Esperantist who was a member of the Estraro for the UEA from 1977 until 1992. From 1980 until 1986, he was president of the UEA, and an honorary member from 1993 onwards.
The Esperanto workers movement has the goal of taking practical advantage of the international language Esperanto for advancing the goals of the labour movement, especially the fight against unrestrained capitalism. It is not only a political movement in the strict sense but also a cultural and educational one. Currently the principal Esperanto associations active in the Esperanto workers movement at the global level are the Sennacieca Asocio Tutmonda and the Internacia Komunista Esperantista Kolektivo, and in a wider sense, the Monda Asembleo Socia.
Ada Fighiera-Sikorska or Ada Sikorska was a Polish Esperantist. She edited the leading newspaper in Esperanto for thirty years. A was a member of the World Association of Esperanto Journalists (TEĴA), the Union of Esperanto Speakers Writers (EVA), the Esperanto PEN Club and an honorary member of the World Esperanto Association (UEA).
The Italian Esperanto Federation is a non-profit organisation that promotes the international auxiliary language Esperanto in Italy. It's headquartered in Milan.
The VIII World Esperanto Congress in 1912 was organized on the 25th anniversary of the publication of the first textbook for learning Esperanto. It took place in Kraków from August 11 to 18, 1912. Ludwik Zamenhof, who participated in it, declared during the opening that he was resigning from the leadership of the movement and would attend the next congress as an ordinary Esperantist. The congress was attended by Esperantists from Europe, Asia, and America. The proceedings took place within 28 sections and plenary meetings. As part of the congress, accompanying events were organized, such as performances, lectures, excursions, and competitions. An exhibition of Esperanto publications was prepared in the building of the Academy of Commerce, and the opening and closing of the congress, plenary sessions, and a ball took place in the halls of the Helena Modrzejewska National Old Theatre, during which participants presented themselves in national costumes.
