Institut Ramon Llull

The Institut Ramon Llull (, English: "Ramon Llull Institute"), also known by the acronym IRL, is a Catalan organization constituted in 2002 in order to "promote Catalan language and culture internationally". The founding members are the autonomous governments of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands with the collaboration of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.

In the 2004-2008 period, the Balearic regional government left the institution, a decision reversed with the government change in this autonomous community in 2008.

IRL headquarters are shared between Barcelona (Catalonia) and Palma (Balearic Islands). On May 21, 2008, the Vives Network (the network of Catalan language universities) was integrated into the IRL.

The institute constitutes the Ramon Llull Foundation (FRL) together with other political institutions from the Països Catalans: the government of Andorra, the General Council of the Pyrénées-Orientales, the city council of Alghero and the Network of Valencian Cities. The latter is an association of a few Valencian city councils that joined together in order to participate in the FRL, in spite of the fact that the Valencian regional government has declined to enter the IRL.

Both the institute and the foundation are named after Ramon Llull, a Majorcan medieval writer and philosopher, who is considered the first notable writer in Catalan.

Read more about Institut Ramon Llull:  Objectives, Structure, International Events and Participation, Funding