We have since updated it, adding in new content for 2021. One study by investment bank Natixis suggests that Africa’s growth may well bring French to the forefront – making it the most-spoken language by 2050.Ĭould French provide a certain je ne sais quoi that no other world language can quite replace? As China continues to increase its economic might and influence, its languages will proliferate as well.Īt the same time, 26 African countries are projected to double their current size, many of which speak French as a first language. The rise of China is an obvious one to consider. However, this status might soon be fuzzier as demographic trends continue. Researchers are compiling ten million Welsh words to preserve the past, present, and future of the language.Īt this point in time, English is the lingua franca – adopted as a common language among speakers with different mother tongues. In the case of Welsh, a mammoth university project plans to make sure it does not die out. More than 150 universities teach Catalan worldwide. While Catalan was once banned, its rebirth is a key marker of identity in Barcelona. However, with globalization, a few interesting linguistic trends are arising.Ĭertain enclaves of marginalized languages are being preserved out of pride for the traditional and cultural histories attached. Some of them might be considered endangered or at risk today, such as Catalan or Welsh. This linguistic tree also includes many languages that are not on the large visualization of 23 mother tongues. It also explains how languages can evolve and branch out over time. While the visualization makes all the world languages seem disparate, this linguistic family tree shows how they grew from a common root. English has 335 million native speakers under its belt, with a widespread reach all over the globe. Today, Spanish has 399 million native speakers, but these are mostly concentrated in Latin America. The rapid proliferation of these languages can be traced back to the history of Spanish conquistadors in the Americas, and British colonies around the world.Īnimation: Map of Colonization (1492 – 2008): Spanglish Takes OverĪfter Chinese, the languages of Spanish and English sit in second and third place in terms of global popularity. You’d have to know at least 3,000 characters to be able to read a newspaper, a far cry from memorizing the A-Z alphabet. Chinese is one of the most challenging languages for English speakers to pick up, in part due its completely unfamiliar scripts.
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