Each year, hundreds of schools as well as growing numbers of companies, organizations and institutions take part in the live nationwide writing exercise. This year, organizers are inviting Song and Dance Festival performers specifically to mark themselves as such on the e-dictation exercise submission page.

On the day of the exercise next Tuesday, March 14, the e-dictation entry form will go live on Vikerraadio's homepage beginning at 10 a.m. Estonian time (UTC+2).

The text of this year's e-dictation exercise will be read live on Vikerraadio beginning at 10:25 a.m., and participants will have until 11 a.m. to submit their entries. The exercise text will be recited live on air several times in a row.

The e-dictation page has also been adapted for use by blind and low-vision participants, and deaf and hard of hearing participants can participate via a video version of the text that will be released simultaneously on ERR.ee.

Six categories, including one for Estonians abroad

The results of the e-dictation competition will be announced live on air that same day, on a program starting at 2:05 p.m. during which the exercise text itself will be explained in detail.

Winners will be announced in six categories: students, adults, Estonian philologists and Estonian language teachers, non-native speakers, hard of hearing people as well as Estonians living or studying abroad.

Participants are encouraged to submit photos of people taking part in this year's e-dictation to [email protected] and tag photos shared on social media with the hashtag #vikerraadioetteütlus.

The full, correctly written text, together with acceptable alternate spellings as well as explanations about common errors, will be published on Vikerraadio's homepage as well.

This year's e-dictation text is being compiled by:

• Joosep Susi, Estonian literature PhD student at the University of Tartu (TÜ) and junior lecturer of literature didactics and Estonian literature at Tallinn University (TLÜ);
• Peeter Päll, chief language planner, Institute of the Estonian Language (EKI);
• Helika Mäekivi, senior language planner, EKI;
• Merilin Aruvee, lecturer of L1 didactics, TLÜ;
• Triin Toome, Estonian language and literature teature, Rocca al Mare School's Vodja Individual Study Center;
• Sirli Zupping, adviser, Language Policy Department at the Ministry of Education and Research;
• Piret Kriivan, "Keelesaade" author, managing editor, Vikerraadio.

The e-dictation exercise is being organized by Vikerraadio together with the Institute of the Estonian Language and the Ministry of Education and Research.

Not the first Song Festival-themed text

The text of Vikerraadio's 12th e-dictation exercise was Song Festival-themed in 2019 as well, as the country celebrated both the Year of Estonian Language and the 150th anniversary of the first Estonian Song Festival, which was held in Tartu in 1869.

Nearly 8,000 submissions were received that year, of which 59 entries were deemed flawless and many more contained just one or two mistakes.

The full text of the 2019 e-dictation exercise was as follows:

Aitäh, kaasmaalane, et pärast mitmendat-setmendat korda "Tõe ja õiguse" vaatamist ärksalt e-etteütlust kirjutad,¹ tähistamaks riigikeele ning laulupeo juubelit!²

Laulu- ja tantsupeole soovivad kõik, olgu nad nii-öelda euroaastal³ sündinud kooliuusikud, kes lauluväljakul⁴ veel hästi ei orienteeru, või Välis-Eesti⁵ tantsurühmad, kes Kalevi⁶ keskstaadionil "Tuljakut"⁷ esitades ühekorraga kodumaaigatsust⁸ ja jällenägemise rõõmu⁹ tunnevad.

Kas üle-eestiline¹⁰ juubelipidu "Minu arm"¹¹ kuulub rahvusringhäälingu enim vaadatud¹² saadete hulka, on heinakuu alguseni teadmata.

"Laula ja hõiska!" hüüab debütant dirigendipuldis, kui gustavernesaksalikku¹³ segakoorilaulu¹⁴ juhatab ja enamik lauljaid vaid ümiseb, pilgud laulutaadi¹⁵ mälestussambal.

Acceptable alternate spellings:

1. The comma before the word "tähistamaks" is not required.
2. The first sentence may be punctuated with either a full stop or an exclamation point.
3. euroaasta / euro aasta
4. lauluväljakul / Lauluväljakul
5. Välis-Eesti / väliseesti
6. Kalevi / "Kalevi"
7. "Tuljakut" / tuljakut
8. kodumaaigatsust / kodumaa igatsust
9. jällenägemise / jälle nägemise
10. üle-eestiline / üleeestiline
11. "Minu arm" / Minu Arm
12. enim vaadatud / enimvaadatud
13. gustavernesaksalikku / gustav-ernesaksalikku
14. segakoorilaulu / segakoori laulu
15. laulutaadi / Laulutaadi

Native Language Day is celebrated in Estonia on March 14, marking the birthday of Estonian poet Kristjan Jaak Peterson, a key figure in the emergence of Estonian national literature and regarded as the father of modern Estonian poetry, who died in 1822 at the age of 21.   

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