There are countless countries where English is not the primary or official language, such as China, Russia, Japan, Brazil, France, or Germany, where languages like Mandarin, Russian, Japanese, Portuguese, French, or German are dominant, respectively. While English is a global language, most nations do not have it as their native or sole official tongue, with many having their own unique national languages.
How about China? China is number one on the list. Point 9% of the population is fluent in English. Nobody. They're speaking Mandarin.
69 different languages are spoken in Mexico. This makes Mexico one of the countries with the richest linguistic diversity in the world. In addition to Spanish, there are 68 indigenous languages that include náhuatl, mixteco and otomí, amongst others.
Portugal, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Switzerland, Iceland, Belgium and Italy all have the best non-native English speakers in the world.
Large hotels and those located in or nearby major train stations and airports are likely to have some English and other foreign language-speaking staff. Outside of those, it really varies.
Yes, but it depends on where you go and what you're doing. In tourist-heavy areas like Tokyo, Osaka, and major train stations, basic English signage and support are available. Many Japanese people speak English enough to help with directions or simple purchases, especially younger workers in hospitality.
These countries are sometimes referred to as the “big seven”, and are: the UK, USA, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.
Nineteen-year-old Mahmood Akram from India has amazed the world by mastering 400 languages while simultaneously pursuing multiple university degrees. His linguistic journey began early under the guidance of his father, a linguistics expert, and by the age of six, he had already surpassed his mentor's knowledge.
UNESCO is giving credit where credit is due: Chinese is officially the most difficult language in the world.
Frisian is the closest language to English
The closest language to English is Frisian. This Germanic language is spoken by about 400,000 people in an area historically known as Frisia—now within the modern regions of Netherlands and Germany.
While Hebrew and Arabic are Israel's official languages, it's estimated that over 85% Israeli's speak English to some extent. English is taught in schools from an early age and is commonly used in signage on roads and buildings, government services, and higher education.
Top Best Countries to Learn English
The origins of the English language lie – surprise, surprise – in today's England and the arrival of Anglo-Saxon tribes from Central Europe to the British Isles in 400 AD. Their language, now known as “Old English“, was soon adopted as the common language of this relatively remote corner of Europe.
Top 10 Easiest Languages for English Speakers to Learn
When traveling in Japan, especially if you're in one of the big cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto, you'll generally have no problem not speaking Japanese at all. There are usually English signs all over train stations and airports.
The 80-20 Rule
To boil it down the idea is that 20% of the efforts bring in 80% of the results. In the context of Japanese you only need to know about 20% of the language to be able to get by 80% of the time. Or at least for the core 80% of daily life.