World Esperanto Congress

The World Esperanto Congress (Esperanto: Universala Kongreso de Esperanto, UK) is an annual Esperanto convention. It has the longest tradition among international Esperanto conventions, with an almost unbroken run for 113 years. The congresses have been held since 1905 every year, except during World Wars I and II. Since the 1920s, the Universal Esperanto Association has been organizing these congresses.

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Mark Fettes, president of the World Esperanto Association, during the 100th World Esperanto Congress in Lille (France), 2015

These congresses take place every year and, over the 30 years from 1985 through 2014, have gathered an average of about 2,000 participants (since World War II it has varied from 800 to 6,000, depending on the venue). The average number of countries represented is about 60. Some specialized organizations also gather a few hundred participants in their annual meetings. The World Congress usually takes place in the last week of July or first week of August, beginning and ending on a Saturday (8 days in total). For many years ILERA has operated an amateur radio station during the conventions.

Until 1980, meetings were held in Europe and the United States, with the exception of Japan in 1965. Since then, other countries have been Brazil, Canada, China, Cuba, South Korea, Australia, Israel, Vietnam and Argentina.

The attendance at each World Esperanto Congress from the 1st in 1905 until the 100th in 2015.

World Esperanto Congress 1908