When travelling in Europe, you might wonder which language would be the most useful, in order for everyone to understand you. Is English widely spoken? Here are the most spoken languages in Europe after the official language and English.
Are you trying to learn French for a future trip in France? That’s a great idea, but be sure to learn useful sentences and all the vocabulary about food. And since you’re there, seize the opportunity and visit other francophone countries like Belgium! But if you decide to go big and travel all around Europe, which language (or languages) should you learn? Statista created a map showing which languages are the most spoken in each country of Europe, after the local language and English.
The most spoken languages in Europe
For example, we can see that in France, if you forget about French and English, the most spoken language is Spanish! 13% of the French population can speak Spanish. Maybe that’s because they like to visit nearby Spain, enjoy the sun and eat tapas. In Germany, after German and English, the most spoken language is French! Same for Italy: 16% of the population can speak French! In Portugal as well, 15% of the population can speak French. But it’s not very surprising, when you think about all the French people who come to visit or to retire.
On the map, you can also see that overall, English is the most spoken language in Europe, followed by French and German. So, if you already speak English and you’re learning French, it should be easy for you to connect with locals during your travels in Europe.
Did you expect these results? Which language do you feel you should learn besides English and French? If you’re looking for a bigger challenge, here are the most difficult languages to learn. On the contrary, you might be interested to read about the easiest languages to learn when you’re English.
