Filipino dancers, poets reciting in Nepalese and a First Nations cultural performance will be among the eclectic entertainment when Blacktown City celebrates International Mother Language Day on Saturday 21 February.
Performers representing some of the more than 180 languages spoken across Blacktown City will be part of the free celebrations at The Colebee, Nurragingy Reserve, Doonside, from 4 pm to 8 pm.
People at the event will be invited to mark where they are from on a huge world map, write 'hello' in their mother tongue, and enjoy the performances and activities.
Recognised by the United Nations, International Mother Language Day promotes the ongoing use of the more than 8,000 languages in the world.
Blacktown City Mayor Brad Bunting said acknowledging the many languages was critical to providing fair access to education, preserving cultural traditions and shaping people's identity.
"We love Western Sydney for its cultural diversity, and a key part of that diversity is people practising and sharing their native language," he said.
"It's important we acknowledge Blacktown City is multilingual and rich with different stories and traditions so that we can continue to be a welcoming and respectful community."
Almost half the people (46.3%) in Blacktown City speak a language other than English at home (Census 2021).
The 5 most commonly spoken of those languages are Filipino/Tagalog, Punjabi, Hindi, Arabic and Gujarati.
Jade Cadelina is a volunteer and organiser at the The Filipino Saturday School in Blacktown.
The school teaches Tagalog as well as art, culture and history.
Mr Cadelina said International Mother Language Day was a fantastic way to celebrate multilingualism and its benefits.
"Language is so much a part of our identity and culture and lets us express ourselves," he said.
"International Mother Language Day is a great way to show support for all languages being recognised."
Other community groups participating in the event include the Khalsa Punjabi School, the Samoan Community Culture, Arts & Language Association, and the Tongan Kingdom Academy.
