Språkfesten 2026: multilingual stories and English talks in Stockholm

Storytimes in Spanish, Arabic, Lithuanian and Swedish share the programme at Stockholm’s Språkfesten on Saturday 14 November 2026. The main public day runs from 11am to 5pm at Tranströmerbiblioteket, with two author conversations in English and a children’s book fair featuring Swedish and around 20 other languages.

For families who use more than one language at home, the library’s programme offers several ways to choose an afternoon around the languages you read or speak. Friday’s professional-development programme is separate from Saturday’s public day.

English conversations and bilingual stories

Lebanese illustrator Maya Fidawi speaks with translator Elisabet Risberg in English at 1pm. Argentine picture-book creator Isol joins writer and translator Annakarin Thorburn for another English-language conversation at 3.45pm.

The children’s stage pairs Spanish with Swedish at 11.30am, Lithuanian with Swedish at 12.15pm, and Arabic with Swedish at 3.30pm. A Greek-language Alfons Åberg storytime starts at 2.30pm. Check the individual session when planning your visit: the festival is multilingual, rather than an entirely English-language event.

Try translating poetry

Young people aged 13 to 21 can join poet Athena Farrokhzad’s translation workshop at PUNKT from 2pm to 4pm on Saturday. It uses exercises, readings and group discussion to explore moving a text between languages. Participants do not need to speak their other language fluently.

This workshop is free, but booking is required through its event page. Check there for current availability rather than assuming a place is reserved by attending the wider festival. PUNKT is the youth library on floor five of Medborgarhuset.

Two Sunday sessions, in different libraries

On Sunday 15 November, Isol visits Kungsholmens bibliotek Internationella biblioteket from 2pm to 3.30pm. The programme includes books read in Spanish and Swedish, a creative activity and refreshments. Isol received the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2013.

At Kista bibliotek, Maya Fidawi and librarian Matilda Wallin lead Arabic-and-Swedish stories followed by a related craft activity from 2.30pm to 4pm. That session is for children aged four and up, with drop-in admission and no advance registration required. The two Sunday sessions overlap, so choose the library that suits your family rather than planning to attend both in full.

Finding the Saturday venue

Tranströmerbiblioteket is inside Medborgarhuset at Götgatan 54, with entrances from Götgatan and Medborgarplatsen. The main library is one level above the square, or floor four if using the lift. The library lists a hearing loop for stage events.

All times here are local to Stockholm. Check the official programme before travelling, as sessions can change. The workshop and Kista session have their own booking information; do not assume those arrangements apply to every festival event.

Archive venue photograph: Medborgarhuset in July 2020, not a photograph of Språkfesten. Photo: Arild Vågen / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped and resized; the adapted photograph is shared under the same licence.