EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ANGOLA IN JAPAN
INSTITUTIONAL AND PRESS SERVICE
PRESS RELEASE
Tokyo, May 11, 2026 – Angola’s Ambassador to Japan, Teodolinda Rosa Rodrigues Coelho, highlighted on Monday (May 11) the importance of the Portuguese language as a factor in cultural cohesion and the affirmation of identity for the more than 230 million Portuguese speakers worldwide.
The diplomat was speaking at Portugal’s official residence in Tokyo during a ceremony commemorating World Portuguese Language Day, celebrated on May 5, and the 30th anniversary of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP).
The event was attended by Japan’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Iwao Horii, who reaffirmed the importance of strategic cooperation between Japan and the CPLP countries. Japan has been an observer member of the organization since 2014, becoming the first Asian country to obtain this status.
Portuguese is the official language of nine countries: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Timor Leste, as well as the Macao Special Administrative Region of China. It is also the most widely spoken language in the Southern Hemisphere.
May 5 was established as World Portuguese Language Day in 2009, during the 14th Ordinary Meeting of the CPLP Council of Ministers, held in the city of Praia, Cape Verde. It was subsequently officially proclaimed by UNESCO on November 25, 2019, during the 40th session of the organization’s General Conference, making Portuguese the first language in the world to have official date recognized by the United Nations.
The celebration in Tokyo took place this Monday due to its overlap with Golden Week, a period of extended holidays in Japan that runs from April 29 to May 5.
INSTITUTIONAL COMMUNICATIONS AND PRESS OFFICE, EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ANGOLA IN JAPAN, in Tokyo on May 12, 2026. –
