Some experts now argue that Mandarin Chinese would be the most likely candidate, because of the rate of expansion of the Chinese population and economy.
The American studies, philosophy and music expert at Columbia University, predicts that 90 per cent of languages will die out to leave around 600.
According to the Engco Forecasting Model explained above, the 5 most spoken languages in 2050 will be Mandarin, Spanish, English, Hindi and Arabic. The key drivers behind the continued rise in popularity of these languages include population growth, economic predictions and national language policy.
Linguists point to how the loss of languages is worsened by climate change. As temperatures rise, so does the rate at which crucial elements of indigenous culture become extinct across the world. It is calculated that, at the current rate, around 90% of all languages will disappear in the next 100 years.
Today, the voices of more than 7,000 languages resound across our planet every moment, but about 2,900 or 41% are endangered. At current rates, about 90% of all languages will become extinct in the next 100 years.
English is still the number one most spoken language around the world with about 370 million native speakers and almost 1 billion second-language speakers. It is still the most international language and it is the language of the Internet, business, and science. To be blunt, English is far from dying.
A new study found that of the world's 7,000 recognised languages, around half are currently endangered. Nearly a fifth of the world's languages could disappear by the end of the century, a new study warns.
The language is currently spoken by well over 100 million people. Though the native population is decreasing due to aging, with increased immigration to Japan the population will probably end up staying at least stable.
Language grows and continuously adapts, evolving as we come up with better words that reflect our society or culture. In particular, it mirrors the complexity with which our lives intertwine with technology. When our technology evolves quicker than ever before, so too does our language.
1. Mandarin Chinese. Despite China being in a more isolated part of the world, the stats show Mandarin as the best language to learn for the future for many reasons. China currently has the top economy in the world and only keeps expanding, gaining international partnerships in every corner of the earth.
Hindi, Bengali, Urdu, and Indonesian will dominate much of the business world by 2050, followed by Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, and Russian. If you want to get more out of your language course, study one of our language programs, probably a safe bet for your future.
Over the past century alone, around 400 languages – about one every three months – have gone extinct, and most linguists estimate that 50% of the world's remaining 6,500 languages will be gone by the end of this century (some put that figure as high as , however).
Most languages, though, die out gradually as successive generations of speakers become bilingual and then begin to lose proficiency in their traditional languages. This often happens when speakers seek to learn a more-prestigious language in order to gain social and economic advantages or to avoid discrimination.
One language dies every 14 days. By the next century nearly half of the roughly 7,000 languages spoken on Earth will likely disappear, as communities abandon native tongues in favor of English, Mandarin, or Spanish. What is lost when a language goes silent?
Although there are intonation differences you have to be aware of, you don't have to tip-toe around sounds to convey the right meaning. This is why Japanese is easier to learn than Chinese. English native speakers can reach fluency faster.
However, many experts believe it takes between 4 to 6 months of dedicated study to reach a beginner level. On the other hand, you can expect to spend at least 3 years studying to become fluent in Japanese with near-native level accuracy.
If you speak English and don't mind living in Japan's English-speaking, gaijin-friendly bubble, having little or no Japanese can be manageable most of the time. You'll still be able to meet new people, experience unique moments, and navigate much of Japan just fine.
Both Old English and Old Norse had gender, but sometimes their genders contradicted each other. In order to simplify communication, gendered nouns simply disappeared. Of course, gender did not disappear entirely. We still have gendered pronouns in English: he, she and it.
An endangered language is one that is likely to become extinct in the near future. Many languages are failing out of use and being replaced by others that are more widely used in the region or nation, such as English in the U.S. or Spanish in Mexico.
There has only been one successful instance of a complete language revival, the Hebrew language, creating a new generation of native speakers without any pre-existing native speakers as a model. Languages targeted for language revitalization include those whose use and prominence is severely limited.
As far as dead languages go, Latin is the most studied. It's also one of the most famous dead languages. This is because it was (and is) taught in schools, because of its importance in the Christian church, and because of its use in legal or political situations.
It's unlikely that we'll see a world that speaks one language any time soon. Protecting each individual countries' cultures is a huge barrier, but an important one to ensure our world is as beautifully diverse as it's always been.