Spanish is the official language in 20 countries spanning 4 continents. It is the world’s fourth-most spoken language, and with over 483 million native speakers, Spanish is the world’s second-most spoken native language. Considered increasing important for international business, being able to effectively communicate in the language of Cervantes is not just a boon to everyday social interactions, but often necessary to succeed in commercial encounters.
Whether you’re new to the language, seeking to improve your conversational skills or wanting to achieve fluency, Bergen Language Group can help integrate you into the global Spanish language
Italian, together with Sardinian, is the closest language to the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire from which it descends. Italian is an official language in Italy, Switzerland, San Marino and Vatican City. It has an official minority status in western Istria (Croatia and Slovenia). It formerly had official status in Albania, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro (Kotor) and Greece (Ionian Islands and Dodecanese) and is generally understood in Corsica (due to its close relation with the Tuscan-influenced local language) and Savoie. It also used to be an official language in the former Italian East Africa and Italian North Africa, where it still plays a significant role in various sectors. Italian is also spoken by large expatriate communities in the Americas and Australia. Italian is included under the languages covered by the European Charter for Regional or Minority languages in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Romania, although Italian is neither a co-official nor a protected language in these countries.
All the above adds up to a very interesting piece of information: Italian is the fourth most studied language in the world – an impressive feat, considering Italy’s relatively small size.
German is by far the most spoken native language within the European Union. It is spoken by more than 120 million people in Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Switzerland and in parts of Belgium, Northern Italy and Eastern France. German is widely studied as a foreign language and is one of the main cultural languages of the Western world. As a written language, German is quite uniform; it differs in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland no more than written English does in the United States and the British Commonwealth. As a spoken language, however, German exists in many variations, most of which belong to either the High German or the Low German dialectal groups. The main difference between High and Low German is in the sound system, especially in the consonants.
Given the demographic prospects of francophone African nations, it has been projected that French will be spoken by 750 million people by 2050, eclipsing the numbers of speakers of Spanish and even possibly English. But even without its demographic potential, French is still one of the world’s most influential languages because of its wide use in the worlds of journalism, jurisprudence, academia, and diplomacy.
Whatever your linguistic objectives, Bergen Language Group can help you engage with the French-speaking world.
Portuguese is one of the most important languages spoken around the world today. Not only is it the sixth most spoken language in the world, but it also has a presence on almost all of the continents. Here are some intriguing facts about this amazing language. It is commonly thought that Portuguese is only spoken in Portugal and Brazil. In fact, it is the official language in nine different countries: Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Timor-Leste, Equatorial Guinea, Cape Verde, and São Tomé and Principe. And, Portuguese is the official language of the Chinese autonomous territory of Macau.
Only 5% of Portuguese speakers live in Portugal.
It’s the fastest-growing European language in the world behind English. There is a huge number of Portuguese speakers around the world in South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia (it is the sixth most spoken language on the planet). According to UNESCO, Portuguese is growing fast and has the potential to be an “international communication language”.
Korean is spoken by more than 75 million people, mainly in North and South Korea, but also in parts of China and Russia. Nonetheless, the separation of the two Korean states has resulted in increasing differences among the dialects that have emerged over time. Since the allies of the newly-founded nations split the Korean peninsula in half after 1945, the newly formed Korean nations have since borrowed vocabulary extensively from their respective allies. As the Soviet Union helped industrialize North Korea and establish it as a communist state, the North Koreans borrowed a number of Russian terms. Likewise, since the United States helped South Korea extensively to develop militarily, economically, and politically, South Koreans borrowed extensively from English.
Before the creation of the modern Korean alphabet, known as Chosongul in North Korea and as Hangul in South Korea, the educated Korean primarily wrote using classical Chinese. However, due to the fundamental differences between the Korean and Chinese languages and the large number of characters to be learned, the majority of the population had much difficulty in learning how to write using Chinese characters. In order to assuage this problem, King Sejona (r. 1418–1450) created the Hangul alphabet to promote literacy among the common people.
Japanese is a language isolate (i.e., a language unrelated to any other language) and one of the world’s major languages, with more than 127 million speakers in the early 21st century. It is primarily spoken throughout the Japanese archipelago; there are also some 1.5 million Japanese immigrants and their descendants living abroad, mainly in North and South America, who have varying degrees of proficiency in Japanese. Since the mid-20th century, no nation other than Japan has used Japanese as a first or a second language. Through the years Japanese grammatical structure has remained surprisingly stable. Its syntax has remained stable, as well, maintaining its characteristic subject>object>verb sentence structure.
English is, by most accounts, the most spoken language in the world and currently ranks as the common language in most international offices. Having any second language is a plus for anyone, but speaking English fluently opens more doors. Internationally, most scientific research and business transactions are being carried out in English.
English is now spoken by about 1.7 billion people, a quarter of all the people in the world. This number includes first and second language speakers. There is no official government agency in the United States that makes rules for the English language. As a matter of fact, the United States does not even have an official language. Teachers rely on tradition and popular style to determine what proper grammar is.
The first and obvious reason that explains its ascent is due to the British Empire during which time English became an elitist language spoken by the powerful and the educated, very much like French was when it was the most spoken language. Another way English has grown is by welcoming new words from virtually all languages of the world, especially from French. According to numerous sources, more than 45% of all English words have French origin.
Spend an hour practicing your new language with an experienced language coach. Interactive conversations with a real person will help you use what you already know. Gain confidence, and become more fluent.
English, Spanish, French, Italian or Japanese
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