World Esperanto Congress: from 1905 to Melbourne 2027

The World Esperanto Congress (Universala Kongreso de Esperanto, UK) is the largest annual meeting of Esperanto speakers. It has been held almost every year since the first congress in Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, in August 1905, organised since 1933–34 by the Universal Esperanto Association. Up to and including Graz 2026, 111 congresses have been numbered, of which 108 actually took place. The largest was Warsaw 1987 with 5,946 registered participants; recent congresses draw about 850–1,300. The next are planned for Melbourne (2027) and Kaunas (2028).

Everything at the congress – lectures, debates, theatre, concerts, excursions – happens in Esperanto, without interpreters.

#What happens at a World Esperanto Congress?

A typical congress lasts eight days, usually in late July or early August. Regular parts of the programme:

• Opening ceremony (Inaŭguro), with greetings from speakers of each country, and a formal closing (Solena Fermo).
• International Congress University (Internacia Kongresa Universitato), a series of academic lectures; its first lectures were given in Geneva in 1925, and it has run every year since 1951.
• Arts competitions of the UEA (Belartaj Konkursoj) for poetry, prose, drama and music, with results announced at the congress.
• Meetings of the UEA's committee and of specialist associations – for doctors, teachers, railway workers, Catholics, scientists and many others.
• A children's congress (Internacia Infana Kongreseto) for the children of participants.
• Concerts, a national evening presenting the host country, an international evening, and a mid-week excursion day.

Young people have their own International Youth Congress (Internacia Junulara Kongreso, IJK), run by the youth organisation TEJO and first held in 1938.

#Firsts and records

Of the 108 congresses held up to 2026, 88 met in Europe. Germany and the United Kingdom have hosted the most (8 each). See where Esperanto is spoken for more on the host countries.

#Which congresses were cancelled?

Three numbered congresses never took place:

• 1914, Paris (10th) – cancelled when the First World War broke out; 3,739 people had registered, a record at the time.
• 2020, Montreal (105th) and 2021, Belfast (106th) – cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020 an online Virtual Congress with about 2,000 registered participants was held as a tribute; in 2021 the second Virtual Congress, with about 1,850, took the place of the Belfast congress. Montreal hosted the 107th congress in 2022 instead.

There were no congresses in 1916–1919 or 1940–1946 because of the world wars. In 1967 the congress planned for Tel Aviv moved to Rotterdam because of the tension that led to the Six-Day War.

#Complete list of World Esperanto Congresses

Participant numbers are the official registration figures published by the UEA. Some Wikipedia editions give slightly different numbers for a few years (for example 1909 and 1924).

6,0004,0002,0000

192019401960198020002020

Show the data

No.	Year	City	Country	Participants
1	1905	Boulogne-sur-Mer	France	688
2	1906	Geneva	Switzerland	1,200
3	1907	Cambridge	United Kingdom	1,317
4	1908	Dresden	Germany	1,500
5	1909	Barcelona	Spain	1,500
6	1910	Washington, D.C.	United States	357
7	1911	Antwerp	Belgium	1,800
8	1912	Kraków	Austria-Hungary (now Poland)	1,000
9	1913	Bern	Switzerland	1,203
10	1914	Paris	France	cancelled (war)
11	1915	San Francisco	United States	163
12	1920	The Hague	Netherlands	408
13	1921	Prague	Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic)	2,561
14	1922	Helsinki	Finland	850
15	1923	Nuremberg	Germany	4,963
16	1924	Vienna	Austria	3,054
17	1925	Geneva	Switzerland	953
18	1926	Edinburgh	United Kingdom	960
19	1927	Danzig	Free City of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland)	905
20	1928	Antwerp	Belgium	1,494
21	1929	Budapest	Hungary	1,200
22	1930	Oxford	United Kingdom	1,211
23	1931	Kraków	Poland	900
24	1932	Paris	France	1,650
25	1933	Cologne	Germany	950
26	1934	Stockholm	Sweden	2,042
27	1935	Rome	Italy	1,442
28	1936	Vienna	Austria	854
29	1937	Warsaw	Poland	1,120
30	1938	London	United Kingdom	1,602
31	1939	Bern	Switzerland	765
32	1947	Bern	Switzerland	1,370
33	1948	Malmö	Sweden	1,761
34	1949	Bournemouth	United Kingdom	1,534
35	1950	Paris	France	2,325
36	1951	Munich	West Germany	2,040
37	1952	Oslo	Norway	1,614
38	1953	Zagreb	Yugoslavia (now Croatia)	1,760
39	1954	Haarlem	Netherlands	2,353
40	1955	Bologna	Italy	1,687
41	1956	Copenhagen	Denmark	2,200
42	1957	Marseille	France	1,468
43	1958	Mainz	West Germany	2,021
44	1959	Warsaw	Poland	3,256
45	1960	Brussels	Belgium	1,930
46	1961	Harrogate	United Kingdom	1,646
47	1962	Copenhagen	Denmark	1,550
48	1963	Sofia	Bulgaria	3,472
49	1964	The Hague	Netherlands	2,512
50	1965	Tokyo	Japan	1,710
51	1966	Budapest	Hungary	3,975
52	1967	Rotterdam	Netherlands	1,265
53	1968	Madrid	Spain	1,769
54	1969	Helsinki	Finland	1,857
55	1970	Vienna	Austria	1,987
56	1971	London	United Kingdom	2,071
57	1972	Portland, Oregon	United States	923
58	1973	Belgrade	Yugoslavia (now Serbia)	1,638
59	1974	Hamburg	West Germany	1,651
60	1975	Copenhagen	Denmark	1,227
61	1976	Athens	Greece	1,266
62	1977	Reykjavík	Iceland	1,199
63	1978	Varna	Bulgaria	4,414
64	1979	Lucerne	Switzerland	1,630
65	1980	Stockholm	Sweden	1,807
66	1981	Brasília	Brazil	1,749
67	1982	Antwerp	Belgium	1,899
68	1983	Budapest	Hungary	4,834
69	1984	Vancouver	Canada	802
70	1985	Augsburg	West Germany	2,311
71	1986	Beijing	China	2,482
72	1987	Warsaw	Poland	5,946
73	1988	Rotterdam	Netherlands	2,321
74	1989	Brighton	United Kingdom	2,280
75	1990	Havana	Cuba	1,617
76	1991	Bergen	Norway	2,400
77	1992	Vienna	Austria	3,033
78	1993	Valencia	Spain	1,863
79	1994	Seoul	South Korea	1,776
80	1995	Tampere	Finland	2,443
81	1996	Prague	Czech Republic	2,972
82	1997	Adelaide	Australia	1,224
83	1998	Montpellier	France	3,133
84	1999	Berlin	Germany	2,712
85	2000	Tel Aviv	Israel	1,212
86	2001	Zagreb	Croatia	1,691
87	2002	Fortaleza	Brazil	1,484
88	2003	Gothenburg	Sweden	1,792
89	2004	Beijing	China	2,031
90	2005	Vilnius	Lithuania	2,344
91	2006	Florence	Italy	2,209
92	2007	Yokohama	Japan	1,901
93	2008	Rotterdam	Netherlands	1,845
94	2009	Białystok	Poland	1,860
95	2010	Havana	Cuba	1,002
96	2011	Copenhagen	Denmark	1,458
97	2012	Hanoi	Vietnam	866
98	2013	Reykjavík	Iceland	1,034
99	2014	Buenos Aires	Argentina	706
100	2015	Lille	France	2,698
101	2016	Nitra	Slovakia	1,253
102	2017	Seoul	South Korea	1,173
103	2018	Lisbon	Portugal	1,567
104	2019	Lahti	Finland	917
105	2020	Montreal	Canada	cancelled (COVID-19), moved to 2022; online Virtual Congress as a tribute
106	2021	Belfast	United Kingdom	cancelled (COVID-19); replaced by the second online Virtual Congress
107	2022	Montreal	Canada	859
108	2023	Turin	Italy	1,318
109	2024	Arusha	Tanzania	854
110	2025	Brno	Czech Republic	1,132
111	2026	Graz	Austria	1,138
112	2027	Melbourne	Australia	planned: 3–10 July 2027
113	2028	Kaunas	Lithuania	planned

#Which congresses made history?

• Boulogne-sur-Mer 1905 adopted the Declaration of Boulogne, which made the Fundamento de Esperanto the untouchable basis of the language, and the green flag – see the history of Esperanto and flag and symbols.
• Prague 1921 saw the founding of SAT, the workers' Esperanto association, and was attended by a League of Nations delegate.
• Warsaw 1987 celebrated the centenary of Esperanto in Zamenhof's city with the largest attendance ever.
• Prague 1996 adopted the Prague Manifesto, a statement of the movement's seven principles.
• Białystok 2009 met in Zamenhof's birthplace for the 150th anniversary of his birth.
• Lille 2015 was the 100th congress.
• Arusha 2024 was the first congress in Africa.

#When and where is the next World Esperanto Congress?

The 112th World Esperanto Congress is planned for Melbourne, Australia, on 3–10 July 2027 – only the second congress in Oceania after Adelaide 1997. The 113th is planned for Kaunas, Lithuania, in 2028; Kaunas was the birthplace of Zamenhof's wife, Klara. Check the UEA's congress pages for registration details.

#Common questions

#What is the Universala Kongreso?

It is the Esperanto name of the World Esperanto Congress, the main annual gathering of Esperanto speakers, organised by the Universal Esperanto Association.

#How many people attend the World Esperanto Congress?

Recent congresses have had about 850 to 1,300 registered participants: 854 in Arusha (2024), 1,132 in Brno (2025) and 1,138 in Graz (2026). The record is 5,946 in Warsaw in 1987.

#Where was the first World Esperanto Congress?

In Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, in August 1905, with 688 participants from about 20 countries.

#Do you need to speak Esperanto fluently to attend?

No, but the whole programme is in Esperanto, so you need at least a basic level to take part. Many participants are still learners and use the congress to practise.

#Where is the 2027 World Esperanto Congress?

In Melbourne, Australia, planned for 3–10 July 2027.

#Sources

• Universal Esperanto Association, list of World Congresses and congress pages
• Vikipedio, Universala Kongreso de Esperanto; Wikipedia, World Esperanto Congress; Wikipedia (de), Esperanto-Weltkongress
• Virtual Congress registrations: 2020 and 2021
• La Ondo de Esperanto, reports on Brno 2025 and Graz 2026
• Kaunas city, 113th World Esperanto Congress in Kaunas in 2028
• Vikipedio, Internacia Kongresa Universitato and Internacia Junulara Kongreso