Top 10 Most Spoken Languages in the world (and 10 of the Least Spoken)

9. Japanese

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 128,350,830 - *Number of Native Speakers*: 128 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 121,500 - *Where Japanese is Spoken*: Japan, Okinawa - Although Japanese is one of the most widely spoken languages, the origin of the Japanese people and language are relatively unknown. In fact, the first Japanese books were actually written in Chinese. - The Chinese writing method was introduced to the Japanese around 6th century. During that time, the Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans were involved in a diplomatic and religious collaboration, according to Accredited Language Services. As a result, the Chinese culture flooded Japan and greatly influenced the region. Around 40% of Japanese words were adapted from Chinese.

4. Hindi

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 490 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 341 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 150 million - *Where Spoken*: India and Fiji - Coming in at number 4 on the most common languages around the globe is Hindi. Although most Hindi speakers reside in India, Hindi-speaking communities also exist in South Africa, Mauritius, Bangladesh, Yemen, and Uganda. - According to Encyclopedia Britannica, modern day, standard Hindi evolved from Khari Boli. When Muslim invaders settled in India, their languages enhanced Khari Boli and formed standard Hindi. However, in northern India, known as the Hindi Belt, you will find several other dialects of Hindi.

10. Lahnda

- *Number of Native Speakers*: 119 million - *Where Lahnda is Spoken*: Pakistan and India Many people have never heard of the Lahnda language, however it is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world.Lahnda is also known as Lahndi or Western Punjabi. It is technically a group of Indo-Arayan dialects. A linguist George Grierson created the term Lahnda to classify these similar dialects for a language survey

1. Mandarin Chinese

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 1.051 Billion - *Number of Native Speakers*: 873 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 178 million - *Where Chinese is spoken*: People's Republic of China, Republic of China, Singapore, Taiwan, Macau, and Hong Kong - Mandarin Chinese is number one on our top 10 languages in the world! That's right, Chinese is the most spoken language in the world. - However, Chinese is actually a collection of different dialects. Of the dialects, Mandarin is the most common. According to Enthnologue, ?*there are 13 dialects of Chinese spoken in 39 total countries. *Around one third of the population, or 1.3 billion people, speak Chinese. Written Chinese is composed of ideographs. - Globalization Partners International states that there are around 50,000 ideographs found in the Chinese dictionary. However, don't let that big number deter you from learning Chinese. By learning just 1,000 of the most common ideographs, you can read 90% of a Chinese newspaper.

7. Portuguese

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 260 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 221 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 39 million - *Where Portuguese is spoken*: Brazil, Portugal, Mozambique, Macau, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, East Timor, Cape Verde, São Tomé, Príncipe - Portuguese is another common language, and number 6 on the list. Portuguese was developed 2,000 years ago when the Romans arrived in the Iberian Peninsula- modern day Portugal and Spain. Like Spanish, Germanic and Arabic languages also influenced Portuguese. In fact, modern Portuguese has over 400 words that originated from Arabic. - Due to their similar origins, Spanish and Portuguese are very similar languages. So, if you can speak Spanish, then Portuguese should be easier for you to learn.

6. Bengali

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 300 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 228 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 72 million - *Where Spoken*: Bangladesh, India - Though mostly spoken in only two countries, Bengali is one of the most common languages in the world. Another name for Bengali is Bangla. *Bengali evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit, Pali, and Sanskrit languages.* - Bengali is mainly spoken in eastern South Asia. It is the official language of Bangladesh and the second most spoken language in India. - Bengali serves as a bond for the diverse people groups of South Asia. In 1952, Bangladesh was part of East Pakistan. The Bengali speakers, recognizing their language as an important part of their identity, fought hard to keep it alive. *On February 21st 1942, as a part of the Bengali Language Movement, people risked their lives to protect their mother language. Several people lost their lives during the protest and the days that followed.* Now, February 21st is International Mother Language Day to commemorate their struggle and sacrifice.

5. Arabic

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 420 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 319 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 100 million - *Where Arabic is spoken:* Arabic is the official language for more than 20 countries, including Qatar, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Arabic originated in the nomadic tribes in the desert area of the Arabian Peninsula. Consequently, the word "Arab" means nomad. - 8There are technically three versions of Arabic: Modern Standard Arabic, Classical Arabic and Colloquial Arabic*. Modern Standard Arabic is the version taught in schools and used for business. Each country also maintains its own colloquial version of the language. Arabic is written right to left in cursive form.

2. Spanish

- *Total Number of Speakers*: 577 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 460 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 117 million - *Where Spanish is spoken*: Spanish is the official language of 21 countries, including Spain, Mexico and most of South and Central America. Check out our Spanish Speaking Countries post to learn more. - The Spanish language originated near the Castilla region of Spain, which is why the language is also called Castilian. The Latin and Arabic languages greatly influenced Spanish. - Today, *Spanish is the most widely spoken romance language*, spoken by 7.6% of the world's population. El País predicts that by the year 2060 there will be 754 million Spanish speakers

3. English

- *Total Number of Speakers*: around 1.5 Billion - *Number of Native Speakers*: 379 Million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: Over 1 Billion - *Where English is spoken*: According to World Atlas, 35 Countries speak English as their main language. However, English is the leading international language and is the common ground for international business and trade. As a result, more people speak English as a second language than as a native language. - English is one of the most popular languages in the world and number three on the top spoken languages. - The English language began when three Germanic tribes invaded Britain around the 5th century A.D. Those living in Britain already spoke a Celtic language at the time. The invaders pushed the Celtic speakers west, toward Wales. The Germanic tribes spoke different but similar languages, which soon combined to form Old English. - However, Old English is very different from the English we speak today. Through migration and the exposure to other languages, the English language continued to evolve. In fact, the first English dictionary was not published until 1828.

8. Russian

- *Total Number of Speakers:* 264 million - *Number of Native Speakers*: 154 million - *Number of Non-Native Speakers*: 110 million - *Where Russian is spoken*: Russian is the official language of Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan. Russian is also an unofficial language of Ukraine and several former Soviet countries. - Russian belongs to the Slavic family of languages and is one of the three main East Slavic languages. Around 2.3% of the population speaks Russian. - Ironically, even though it is the eighth most commonly spoken language in the world, as of 2013, Russian was the second most commonly used language online, making up for 5.9% of websites