Although there is no exact data on the number of languages spoken in the world, specialists agree that there are about 7,000. But what is the most spoken language in the world?
First of all, it is important to specify that this classification is based on the number of speakers and not on the number of people whose native language it is. From this observation, it is obvious that the most spoken language in the world remains, without question, English. With nearly 1.4 billion people who speak it, among 8 billion inhabitants on earth, English is considered the international language par excellence. So much so that it is spoken on all continents and in more than 165 countries, including as an official language in 50 countries. In fact, in addition to the United Kingdom, Australia, the United States and part of Canada, which have made it their state language, other countries such as South Africa, India and Kenya have also made it one of their official languages.
Mandarin Chinese: the second most spoken language in the world
With more than 1.1 billion people speaking it daily, Mandarin Chinese is the second most spoken language in the world. Also called “Putonghua”, this language is one of the six official languages of the United Nations, along with English, French, Spanish, Arabic and Russian. Extremely widespread in China, mainly in the northeastern part of the country, Mandarin is also widely spoken in territories such as Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and even the United Kingdom. China is the most populous country, ahead of India. Thus, it is obvious that Mandarin Chinese holds a prominent place in this ranking. Note that beyond Mandarin, the Chinese language has a large number of other dialects.
Hindi: the third most spoken language in the world
Because it is a very important language in India with its 1.4 billion inhabitants, Hindi is the third most spoken language in the world. However, it is not, strictly speaking, a national language. As such, and as mentioned above, English remains the official language in India. However, Hindi is spoken on a daily basis by almost half of the Indian population, the majority of whom live in the north of the country. Just as it is used in other countries like Pakistan or Mauritius. Note that words like shampoo, bungalow, jungle, or pyjama are derived from this idiom! Finally, as in other states, there are more than 23 languages spoken on the Indian territory.
What are the top 8 most spoken languages in the world in terms of population?
The most spoken languages in the world are usually involved in the colonization of territories. But not all. Others are by population numbers. So, here are the 8 most spoken languages in the world:
- English with a world population of 1.348 billion
- Mandarin with a world population of 1.120 billion
- Hindi with 600 million
- Spanish with 543 million
- Arabic with 247 million
- Bengali with 268 million people
- French with over 267 million people
- Russian with over 258 million people
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