A part of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), providing radio services in English and 32 other languages. Based in London, it is funded by a grant from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, but is editorially independent of the UK government. The BBC made its first overseas broadcast in 1932, and launched its first foreign language service, Arabic, in 1938. More than 900 national and local radio stations in over 90 countries rebroadcast World Service programmes.
History of BBC World Service Language Broadcasting Services (sorted by Language)
| Language | Start Date | Stop Date | Restart Date |
| Arabic | 1936 | - | - |
| Chinese-Cantonese | 1968 (not verified) | - | - |
| Chinese-Mandarin | 1968 (not verified) | - | - |
| Czech | 1942 (see Slovak) | 25 March 2005 | - |
| Danish | 1942 | 4 March 1961 | - |
| Dutch | 1942 | 4 March 1961 | - |
| English | 25 December 1936 | - | - |
| English (Caribbean) | 25 December 1976 | - | - |
| Finnish | December 1942 | 29 January 1955 | - |
| French | 25 December 1940 | - | - |
| German | 1939 | 25 March 1999 | - |
| Hindi | 11 May 1940 BBC Hindi | - | - |
| Hungarian | January 1941 | 25 March 2005 | - |
| Japanese | 1948 | 25 March 1992 | - |
| Italian | January 1941 | 4 March 1961 | - |
| Malay | 1956 (Malaya Crisis) | 4 March 1980 | - |
| Norwegian | 1941 | 4 March 1961 | - |
| Polish | January 1941 | 25 November 2005 | - |
| Portuguese-Brasil | 6 July 1941 | 25 March 1991 | 2004 |
| Russian | January 1941 | - | - |
| Slovak | January 1941 | 25 March 1991 | - |
| Spanish | 6 July 1936 | - | - |
| Swedish | 1941 | 4 March 1961 | - |
| Thai | 1941 | 1 January 2006 (not verified) | - |
| Ukrainian | September 1952 | - | - |
| Vietnamese | 6 January 1952 | - | - |
| Welsh (to Patagonia) | 1946 | 1947 (1946 exclusive?) | - |
Sources
| 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 1996 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States of America | 497 | 1495 | 1907 | 1901 | 2611 | 1821 |
| Chinese People's Republic | 66 | 687 | 1267 | 1350 | 1515 | 1620 |
| United Kìngdom (BBC) | 643 | 589 | 723 | 719 | 796 | 1036 |
| Russia/USSR | 533 | 1015 | 1908 | 2094 | 1876 | 726 |
| German Federal Republic | 0 | 315 | 779 | 804 | GDR abolished | |
| Egypt | 0 | 301 | 540 | 546 | 605 | 604 |
| Iran | 12 | 24 | 155 | 175 | 400 | 575 |
| India | 116 | 157 | 271 | 389 | 456 | 500 |
| Japan | 0 | 203 | 259 | 259 | 343 | 468 |
| France | 198 | 326 | 200 | 125 | 379 | 459 |
| Netherlands | 127 | 178 | 335 | 289 | 323 | 392 |
| Israel | 0 | 91 | 158 | 210 | 253 | 365 |
| Turkey | 40 | 77 | 88 | 199 | 322 | 364 |
| North Korea | 0 | 159 | 330 | 597 | 534 | 364 |
| Bulgaria | 30 | 117 | 164 | 236 | 320 | 338 |
| Australia | 181 | 257 | 350 | 333 | 330 | 307 |
| Albania | 26 | 63 | 487 | 560 | 451 | 303 |
| Romania | 30 | 159 | 185 | 198 | 199 | 298 |
| Spain | 68 | 202 | 251 | 239 | 403 | 270 |
| PortugaI | 46 | 133 | 295 | 214 | 203 | 226 |
| Cuba | 0 | 0 | 320 | 424 | 352 | 203 |
| Italy | 170 | 205 | 165 | 169 | 181 | 203 |
| Canada | 85 | 80 | 98 | 134 | 195 | 175 |
| Poland | 131 | 232 | 334 | 337 | 292 | 171 |
| South Africa | 0 | 63 | 150 | 183 | 156 | 159 |
| Sweden | 28 | 114 | 140 | 155 | 167 | 149 |
| Hungay | 16 | 120 | 105 | 127 | 102 | 144 |
| Czech Republic | 119 | 196 | 202 | 255 | 131 | 131 |
| Nigeria | 0 | 0 | 62 | 170 | 120 | 127 |
| Yugoslavia | 80 | 70 | 76 | 72 | 96 | 68 |
Notes
USA includes VOA (992 hours per week), RFE/RL (667 hpw), Radio Marti (162 hpw) – 1996 figures.
User Comments Add a comment…