Thursday, Aug. 15
6:00pm-8:00pm EST

In “Esperanto 101,” translator Adam Kuplowsky will offer a brief history of the international auxiliary language known as Esperanto. Drawing on his deep knowledge of the language, Adam will discuss Esperanto's connections to anti-imperial, anti-fascist, and worker movements in the early 20th century. Following this, participants will explore the basics of its grammar, and will practice translating into and out of the language.

At a time when multiple imperial powers were competing for domination of the world's land and resources, Esperanto was created as an internationalist experiment: a language of solidarity that had no allegiance to any country or state. Come learn about this fascinating experiment and what models it might offer for the present.

Adam Kuplowsky is the translator of The Narrow Cage and Other Modern Fairy Tales (Columbia University Press, 2023), a collection of political fairy tales written by Vasily Eroshenko (1890-1952), a blind multilingual Esperantist and anarchist from Ukraine who joined left-wing circles in China and Japan in the early 20th century. He is also the translator of the forthcoming Whispers in a Storm (U of Hawaii Press, 2025), a collection of political writings by Hasegawa Teru (1912-1947), a Japanese Esperantist and anti-fascist who fled Japan in 1937 to join China's War of Resistance against the invading Japanese imperial army.

To register for “Esperanto 101,” donate to Mohammed’s family (suggested donation $60 USD / 56 EUR, please donate more if you can!) then fill out the registration form.