SIL International

SIL International is a global non-profit Christian organization founded in 1934 in Dallas,  USA with the aim of studying, developing and documenting less common languages to broaden linguistic knowledge and cultivate literature. The organization includes more than 6,000 people from over 80 countries of the world.

SIL International is recognised as an advisory organization for UNESCO and the UN. It works closely with Wycliffe Bible Translators, an agency committed to translating the Bible into rare languages. The organization is best known for publishing the Ethnologue catalogue, an annual survey and classification of all the world's languages. The database is available in book form, is searchable via the Internet and operates with a three-letter code for all the world's languages, the so-called SIL code with reference to more than 6,500 languages.

In the work on ISO 639-3, the Ethnologue list was merged with ISO 639-2 and other coding systems to a new three-letter standard that will include all known living, dead and artificial languages. The purpose of the organization is to expand linguistic knowledge, eradicate illiteracy and support the development of minority languages. The motto of the organization is "No Language is Insignificant". In addition to its missionary and linguistic work, SIL also creates computer programs and fonts to help with linguistic work.

SIL International key sectors: Education, Training, Academic Research, Language Development, Advocacy, Capacity Building, Socio-Cultural Development, Software Supports, Translation, etc.