The top 10 languages spoken in the world The top 10 languages
spoken in the world 10. French -- Number of speakers: 129
million Often called the most romantic language in the world,
French is spoken in tons of countries, including Belgium,
Canada, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Haiti. Oh, and France too. We're
actually very lucky that French is so popular, because without
it, we might have been stuck with Dutch Toast, Dutch Fries, and
Dutch kissing (ew!). To say "hello" in French, say "Bonjour"
(bone-JOOR). 9. Malay-- IndonesianNumber of speakers: 159
million Malay-Indonesian is spoken - surprise - in Malaysia and
Indonesia. Actually, we kinda fudged the numbers on this one
because there are many dialects of Malay, the most popular of
which is Indonesian. But they're all pretty much based on the
same root language, which makes it the ninth most-spoken in the
world. Indonesia is a fascinating place; a nation made up of over
13,000 islands it is the sixth most populated country in the
world. Malaysia borders on two of the larger parts of Indonesia
(including the island of Borneo), and is mostly known for its
capital city of Kuala Lumpur. To say "hello" in Indonesian, say
"Selamat pagi" (se-LA-maht PA-gee). 8. Portuguese -- Number of
speakers: 191 million Think of Portuguese as the little language
that could. In the 12th Century, Portugal won its independence
from Spain and expanded all over the world with the help of its
famous explorers like Vasco da Gama and Prince Henry the
Navigator. (Good thing Henry became a navigator . . . could you
imagine if a guy named "Prince Henry the Navigator" became a
florist?) Because Portugal got in so early on the exploring
game, the language established itself all over the world,
especially in Brazil (where it's the national language), Macau,
Angola, Venezuela, and Mozambique. To say "hello" in Portuguese,
say "Bom dia" (bohn DEE-ah). 7. Bengali -- Number of speakers:
211 million In Bangladesh, a country of 120+ million people, just
about everybody speaks Bengali. And because Bangladesh is
virtually surrounded by India (where the population is growing so
fast, just breathing the air can get you pregnant), the number of
Bengali speakers in the world is much higher than most people
would expect. To say "hello" in Bengali, say "Ei Je" (EYE-jay).
6. Arabic -- Number of speakers: 246 million Arabic, one of the
world's oldest languages, is spoken in the Middle East, with
speakers found in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq,
Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Furthermore, because Arabic
is the language of the Koran, millions of Moslems in other
countries speak Arabic as well. So many people have a working
knowledge of Arabic, in fact, that in 1974 it was made the sixth
official language of the United Nations. To say "hello" in
Arabic, say "Al salaam a'alaykum" (Ahl sah-LAHM ah ah-LAY-koom) .
5. Russian -- Number of speakers: 277 million Mikhail Gorbachev,
Boris Yeltsin, and Yakov Smirnoff are among the millions of
Russian speakers out there. Sure, we used to think of them as our
Commie enemies. Now we think of them as our Commie friends. One
of the six languages in the UN, Russian is spoken not only in the
Mother Country, but also in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and the U.S.
(to name just a few places). To say "hello" in Russian, say
"Zdravstvuite" (ZDRAST-vet- yah). 4. Spanish -- Number of
speakers: 392 million Aside from all of those kids who take it in
high school, Spanish is spoken in just about every South American
and Central American country, not to mention Spain , Cuba, and
the U.S. There is a particular interest in Spanish in the U.S.,
as many English words are borrowed from the language, including:
tornado, bonanza, patio, quesadilla, enchilada, and taco grande
supreme. To say "hello" in Spanish, say "Hola" (OH-la). 3.
Hindustani -- Number of speakers: 497 million Hindustani is the
primary language of India's crowded population, and it
encompasses a huge number of dialects (of which the most commonly
spoken is Hindi). While many predict that the population of India
will soon surpass that of China, the prominence of English in
India prevents Hindustani from surpassing the most popular
language in the world. If you're interested in learning a little
Hindi, there's a very easy way: rent an Indian movie. The film
industry in India is the most prolific in the world, making
thousands of action/romance/ musicals every year. To say "hello"
in Hindustani, say "Namaste" (Nah-MAH-stay) . 2. English --
Number of speakers: 508 million While English doesn't have the
most speakers, it is the official language of more countries than
any other language. Its speakers hail from all around the world,
including the U.S., Australia, England, Zimbabwe, the Caribbean,
Hong Kong , South Africa, and Canada. We'd tell you more about
English, but you probably feel pretty comfortable with the
language already. Let's just move on to the most popular language
in the world. To say "hello" in English, say "What's up, freak?"
(watz-UP-freek) . 1. Mandarin -- Number of speakers: 1
billion+ Surprise, surprise, the most widely spoken language on
the planet is based in the most populated country on the planet,
China. Beating second-place English by a 2 to 1 ratio, but don't
let that lull you into thinking that Mandarin is easy to learn.
Speaking Mandarin can be really tough, because each word can be
pronounced in four ways (or "tones"), and a beginner will
invariably have trouble distinguishing one tone from another. But
if over a billion people could do it, so could you. Try saying
hello! To say "hello" in Mandarin, say "Ni hao" (Nee HaOW).
("Hao" is pronounced as one syllable, but the tone requires that
you let your voice drop midway, and then raise it again at the
end.)
