The English language originated from Anglo-Frisian language brought to Britain in the mid 5th to 7th centuries AD by Anglo-Saxon migrants from what is now Northwest Germany, southern Denmark and the Netherlands. People who speak English are known as Anglophones. And the countries that speak English natively are termed as the Anglo-spheares. It is the third largest language by the number of native speakers and the largest language by the number of speakers globally.
So there’s no doubt many countries have English as their 2nd official language. It is also termed as ‘world language’. This language is also vital from the point of view of globalization. Due to it’s ever increasing use, English has an impact on many other languages. It’s linguistic imperialism is leading to language shift and even it’s death. In history, Britain colonizing different countries had an impact of linguistic dynamic as well.
List of Top 10 English Speaking Countries 2023
Here are the top 10 English speaking countries in the world:
1. Australia
Australia is the largest inland city. The capital city is Canberra with population of 345,000. Other large cities are Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide. Australia strongly influences American pop culture through cinema and TV. English is the national language in Australia. It has a unique accent and terms that has found it’s way into other sects of world of English speaking. Australian English is largely based on British English. The second most spoken language is Italian
2. Germany
Germany, a western European country with population of around 8.32 crores. It’s capital is Berlin. Germany has over 2 millennai of history. It’s is a country that has both fast city life and quiet suburban experience. It is known as the land of poets and thinkers. It has a high percentage of English speakers which is around 56%. It’s relatively high than other European countries. People residing in the tourist areas of Germany are more likely to have a tight grasp on the language.
3. Phillipines
Phillipines, has 7640 islands and is situated in Western Pacific Ocean. It is the third largest English speaking country in the world with Christianity as the dominant religion. Although language barriers are quite common while visiting there. Most public signs and announcements are in English. Not only that, the colleges in Phillipines solely follow English as their medium of instruction, especially the medical colleges. According to the latest statistics, 94% students on a global platform prefer English as their medium of communication, making Philippines the best choice ever.
4. Italy
Northern Italian cities have the most English speakers, with proficiency falling of between the central and southern Italian cities below Rome. Italy is home to millions of tourists every year. In larger tourist attractions such as Rome, Milan etc receive the most number of English speaking tourists. Which is why most of the people in tourism industry there know the basics of the language.
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5. Portugal
English as a second language, Portugal is the 7th most proficient country in the world. It is a widely spoken language there. It has grown to become a major language in areas like Lisbon which is a tourist attraction. Around 32% of people in Portugal speak English and only 9% can speak Portuguese fluently. Older people there barely speak English as the curriculum prioritized French. Besides English, Spanish is widely spoken. Although restaurants and café have people who speak English, it is difficult to find any within health centers and government department such as tax department.
6. Canada
Canada is bilingual country with English and French as official languages. As many Indians have migrated to Canada in the past few years, Punjabi was also declared as one of the official languages although almost all of the Indians there speak English. Despite of having English and French as official language, Canada has the third largest English speaking population. As a matter of fact, in the total of 67 different countries, English is considered as an official language. Around 75.4% people in Canada speak in English.
7. Singapore
Singapore became a pioneer in adopting English as the language of instruction for most subjects in school. This was back in 1987. Prime Minister there believes that proficiency in English can become a key to build Singapore’s economy. It can also be responsible for developing the regional and global potential. Around 37% of people in Singapore speak in English while only 35% speak in Mandarin. British English is the standard English as the legacy of the British colony.
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8. Nigeria
Nigeria’s population is about 200 million. There are around 350 indigenous languages that is used in most of Nigeria. English is the official language, therefore there are more Nigerians that have English as their first language. Nigerian English is a dialect spoken there, derived from British English as Britain had once colonized Nigeria. Around 53% of Nigerian population can speak English. Many of their words have been added to the English Oxford Dictionary, mostly from the field of food.
9. India
India is one the countries that have been under the impact of British reign as Britain had once colonized India. 259678 i.e 0.02% of Indian population consider English as their first language, while 6.8% that is 83 million Indians claim English to be their second language. Meanwhile 46 million report it as their third language. Majority of Indian school and college curriculum instructions as in English language.
10. Pakistan
Along with Urdu, English is the official language in Pakistan. Around 49% speak English as their second language. Although the percentage is less, people do speak English in the rural areas. The young population can easily speak and understand at least the basics there. English language had a hold on Pakistan because of it’s former British colony situation.
The English language definitely influences most of the World’s culture. Most of the people base their personality on this language to stay relevant in their peer groups and also because of the pop culture. English also serves as mediator when the regional or the native language comes as a barrier. Therefore English is definitely one of those languages that has brought people of the world closer despite of their cultural background.
