More than a century ago, the West Yorkshire town became home to the first organised Esperanto society in the UK, after a local journalist discovered the language and set in motion a movement that would spread across the country.
A language created to bring people together
Esperanto was first published in 1887 by Ludwik L Zamenhof, a Jewish doctor from what is now Poland, then part of the Russian Empire. Growing up in the town of Białystok, Zamenhof witnessed daily tensions between communities who spoke different languages, including Yiddish, Polish, German and Russian.
As a teenager, he began developing a new, simple language that could act as a shared second tongue, allowing people to communicate on equal terms and, he hoped, reduce conflict.
“It was his response to growing up surrounded by division,” said John Greenwood, a long‑time Esperanto speaker and trustee of the Esperanto Association of Britain.
Mr Greenwood added: “He believed that if people could understand one another, they’d be less likely to fight.”
Zamenhof eventually published his idea in a book titled Unua Libro (“First Book”), written under the pseudonym Doktoro Esperanto meaning “one who hopes”. The book was funded almost entirely by his wife’s dowry.
From Poland to West Yorkshire
Despite its European origins, Esperanto’s British roots can be traced to Keighley in 1902, when local journalist Joseph Rhodes came across the language and immediately embraced its ideals.
Rhodes organised a public meeting in a building near Keighley Library, now a JD Wetherspoon, inviting residents to learn about what was then simply known as “the international language”.
“The turnout was huge,” Mr Greenwood said. “People were genuinely curious and enthusiastic.”
The meeting led to the founding of Britain’s first Esperanto society, with Rhodes acting as its secretary. Records kept by Zamenhof himself show a sudden spike in Esperanto learners from Keighley and nearby towns shortly after Rhodes joined the movement.
“You can actually see Keighley appear on Zamenhof’s handwritten lists,”
Mr Greenwood said: “Once Rhodes gets involved, there’s an immediate influx of names from the area.”
Why Keighley?
Historians and linguists believe Esperanto resonated particularly strongly in industrial towns like Keighley, where there was a strong tradition of self‑education and internationalist thinking among working‑class communities.
Mr Greenwood explained: “This wasn’t about Latin or Greek, languages associated with elites and universities,”
He added: “Esperanto was practical. It was meant to be used by ordinary people.”
Mr Rhodes himself helped foster international links, organising early exchange visits between Keighley and a town in France, bringing French visitors to Yorkshire and taking locals abroad, a rare experience at the time.
The movement also appealed to those with left‑leaning or anti‑nationalist views, who saw Esperanto as a way of forming bonds across borders and reducing the likelihood of war.
A changing presence today
While Esperanto clubs later formed in London and academic centres, Mr Greenwood says Britain’s earliest adopters were overwhelmingly from northern industrial towns, with Keighley leading the way.
The Esperanto society in Keighley eventually faded, though small groups still meet elsewhere in West Yorkshire, including a monthly gathering in Skipton.
In recent years, interest has been renewed through digital platforms such as Duolingo, where Esperanto remains one of the most popular constructed language courses.
Mr Greenwood said: “It’s logical, phonetic and designed to have no exceptions…people often stumble across it online and suddenly realise how accessible it is.”
A little‑known local legacy
Despite its significance, Keighley’s role in British Esperanto history remains largely unmarked.
Mr Greenwood said: “For something that started here and went on to shape a national movement, it’s surprisingly unknown…you’d expect it to have happened in London or Oxford, but instead, it was this West Yorkshire town.”
More than 120 years on, Esperanto’s ideals of communication, understanding and international cooperation continue to find new audiences, and Keighley’s place in that story remains a unique chapter in the town’s history.