Hispanosphere
It is estimated that the combined total number of Spanish speakers is between 470 and 500 million, making it the third most spoken
language by total number of speakers (after Chinese, and English). Spanish is the second most-widely spoken language in terms of
native speakers.
Europe: Spanish spoken in the European Union
In Europe, Spanish is an official language of Spain, the country after which it is named and from which it originated. It is widely
spoken in Gibraltar, though English is the official language.[80] It is the most spoken language in Andorra, though Catalan is the
official language.[81][82]
Spanish is spoken in 20 different countries worldwide. It is also spoken by small communities in other European countries, such as the
United Kingdom, France, and Germany.[83] Spanish is an official language of the European Union. In Switzerland, Spanish is the
native language of 1.7% of the population, representing the largest minority after the 4 official languages of the country.[84]
Latin America: Hispanic America
Most Spanish speakers are in Latin America; of all countries with a majority of Spanish speakers, only Spain and Equatorial Guinea
are outside the Americas. Mexico has the most native speakers of any country. Nationally, Spanish is the official language—either de
facto or de jure—of Argentina, Bolivia (co-official with Quechua and Aymara), Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican
Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico , Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay (co-official with Guaraní[87]), Peru
(co-official with Quechua and, in some regions, Aymara), Uruguay, and Venezuela. Spanish is also the official language (co-official
with English) in Puerto Rico.[88]
Spanish has no official recognition in the former British colony of Belize; however, per the 2000 census, it is spoken by 43% of the
population.[89][90] Mainly, it is spoken by the descendants of Hispanics who have been in the region since the 17th century; however,
English is the official language.[91]
Spain colonized Trinidad and Tobago first in 1498, introducing the Spanish language to the Carib people. Also the Cocoa Panyols,
laborers from Venezuela, took their culture and language with them; they are accredited with the music of "Parang" ("Parranda") on
the island. Because of Trinidad's location on the South American coast, the country is greatly influenced by its Spanish-speaking
neighbors. A recent census shows that more than 1 500 inhabitants speak Spanish.[92] In 2004, the government launched the Spanish as
a First Foreign Language (SAFFL) initiative in March 2005.[93] Government regulations require Spanish to be taught, beginning in
primary school, while thirty percent of public employees are to be linguistically competent within five years.[92]
Spanish is important in Brazil because of its proximity to and increased trade with its Spanish-speaking neighbors, and because of its
membership in the Mercosur trading bloc and the Union of South American Nations.[94] In 2005, the National Congress of Brazil
approved a bill, signed into law by the President, making Spanish language teaching mandatory in both public and private secondary
schools in Brazil.[95] In many border towns and villages (especially in the Uruguayan-Brazilian and Paraguayan-Brazilian border
areas), a mixed language known as Portuñol is spoken.[96]
United States: Spanish spoken in the United States.
According to 2006 census data, 44.3 million people of the U.S. population were Hispanic or Latino by origin;[97] 34 million people,
12.2 percent, of the population more than five years old speak Spanish at home.[98] Spanish has a long history in the United States
because many south-western states were part of Mexico, and Florida was also part of Spain, and it recently has been revitalized by
Hispanic immigrants. Spanish is the most widely taught language in the country after English. Although the United States has no
formally designated "official languages," Spanish is formally recognized at the state level in various states besides English; in the U.S.
state of New Mexico for instance, 40% of the population speaks the language. It also has strong influence in metropolitan areas such
as Los Angeles, Miami, San Antonio, New York City, and Chicago and in the last decade, the language has rapidly expanded in
Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Phoenix, Richmond, Washington, DC, and Missouri.
Spanish is the dominant spoken language in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory. With a total of 33,701,181 Spanish (Castilian) speakers,
according to US Census Bureau,[99] the U.S. has the world's second-largest Spanish-speaking population.[100] Spanish ranks second,
behind English, as the language spoken most widely at home.[101]
Countries where Spanish has official status.
States of the U.S. where Spanish has no official status but is spoken by 25% or more of the population.
States of the U.S. where Spanish has no official status but is spoken by 10-20% of the population.
States of the U.S. where Spanish has no official status but is spoken by 5-9.9% of the population
Español
Sólo se muestran los lugares con las tasas más altas de hablantes de español como lengua materna. Los lugares con bajos índices
de hablantes nativos de español (por ejemplo, Francia) no se muestran en este mapa, ni las comunidades de hablantes no nativos en
español. Este mapa muestra todas las partes del mundo donde el español es hablado. Tenga en cuenta que esto no es lo mismo que los
países que se han considerado tradicionalmente como el núcleo de la Hispanidad (porque tienen el español como idioma oficial, y es
la lengua principal del país, o porque han sido históricamente importante en la creación de la comunidad de hispanohablantes).
English (translation)
Only communities with the highest rates of speakers-of-Spanish-as-a-native-language are shown. Those with low rates of such
communities of Spanish native speakers (for example, France) are not shown on this map, nor are communities of non-native Spanish
speakers. This map shows all the parts of the World where Spanish or its créole languages are spoken. Note that this is not the
same as the countries that are traditionally considered as the core of the Hispanidad (because they have Spanish as official language
and it is the main language of the country, or because they have been historically important in the creation of the Hispanophone
community).
CONVERSATION:
1. Has visitado algún país en donde el Español sea la lengua materna? Have you visited a country where Spanish is the Native Language?
2. Cual país hispanohablante te gustaría visitar? Porque?
Which Spanish-speaking country would you like to visit? Why?
Español:




Países con el idioma español como oficial
Países con más de 1.000.000 de estudiantes
Países con más de 100.000 de estudiantes
Países con más de 20.000 de estudiantes

CONVERSATION:
1. Porqué crees que el idioma Español es estudiado por muchos en los Estados Unidos de América? Why do you think Spanish language is
studied by many in the US?
2. Que te motivo a estudiar el idioma? What motivated you to learn the language?
3. Que es lo que más te gusta de idioma Espanol? What is the thing you like the most from the Spanish language?
4. Como estudias el idioma? How do you study the language?