In pursuit of enhancing focus on language and linguistics across the Asia-Pacific region, the Asia Pacific Linguistics Olympiad (APLO) has been annually conducted since 2019. Last year, we witnessed the participation of 491 contestants from 9 countries/regions at 10 official testing sites, alongside 196 students from 10 guest countries around the world.
As the Board of APLO, we are committed to furthering this initiative and are pleased to extend an invitation for your participation in our seventh Olympiad, scheduled for 20 April 2025. APLO is a unique contest where students from various countries do not gather physically in one location. Instead, problem sets are provided in advance to local organising committees in each participating country or region, with contestants competing synchronously in their respective countries.
For comprehensive information regarding the purposes, format, accreditation criteria, and awarding scheme of APLO, please refer to the APLO constitution and the Frequently Asked Questions provided below.
Regional Delegations
We invite countries or regions in the Asia-Pacific region, especially those who have previously participated or expressed interest in the APLO or IOL, to join us in APLO 2025. Check this page to see which countries participated in APLO last year.
Guest Participation
Countries or regions outside the Asia-Pacific are also welcome to join APLO 2025 as guest countries.
Local Organisers of guest countries should meet the same criteria for accreditation and apply before the same deadline. The differences between fully participating countries and guest countries are as follows:
- contestants are given certificates of participation but not awards;
- contests must start during or after the official starting time slot of APLO.
Timeline of APLO 2025
| Date | Event | Details |
|---|---|---|
| By 31 January | Registration | Each delegation should apply for accreditation and claim their working language. The International Board accredits the delegations and finalizes the participating list. |
| 6 April | Preparation | The International Jury distributes the multilingual versions of the problem set. Local Organisers print the problem sets and prepare for the contest. |
| 20 April | APLO in official delegations | The APLO is held at each official testing site. |
| 25 April | Grading | The Local Jury grades the papers within 5 days of the contest’s conclusion using the solutions and grading scheme provided by the International Jury. |
| 4 May | Publication of Results | All results for official delegations will be posted on the website, along with the problem sets and the solutions. |
| 20 April – 4 May | APLO in guest delegations | The APLO takes place for guest delegations. The same grading process as for official delegations is followed for guest delegations. |
| 18 May | Distribution of Awards | All results for guest delegations will be posted on the website. The International Board sends out digital certificates to the Local Organisers. |
| July | APLO Joint Training | The APLO Joint Training is held. The Annual General Meeting of the APLO is held during the APLO Joint Training. |
International Board of the APLO 2025
- Minkyu Kim, General Chair
- Vlad A. Neacșu, Secretary General & International Jury Chair
- Simona Klemenčič, Public Relations Chair
- Suhaimi Ramly, APLO Board member
- Grace Kuo, APLO Board member