Languages in use per country - checklist
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Checklist
Many countries have more than one official language, but the linguistic world gets more complicated. Many countries that can be an excellent choice for your localization efforts have tens, hundreds, or thousands of languages and dialects in active use.
Check out this comprehensive list of languages actively used per country as your quick cheat sheet.
Tip!
There is a difference between a language and scripts used to write down the language. These can differ in the writing direction, while some languages have dual alphabets.
| Country | Language in Use |
|---|---|
| Afghanistan | Dari Persian, Pashtu (both official), other Turkic and minor languages |
| Albania | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek |
| Algeria | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects |
| Andorra | Catalán (official), French, Castilian, Portuguese |
| Angola | Portuguese (official), Bantu and other African languages |
| Antigua and Barbuda | English (official), local dialects |
| Argentina | Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French |
| Armenia | Armenian 98%, Yezidi, Russian |
| Australia | English 79%, native and other languages |
| Austria | German; Slovene, Croatian, Hungarian |
| Azerbaijan | Azerbaijani Turkic 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% |
| Bahamas | English (official), Creole |
| Bahrain | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
| Bangladesh | Bangla (official), English |
| Barbados | English |
| Belarus | Belorussian, Russian |
| Belgium | Dutch (Flemish), French, German |
| Belize | English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna, Creole |
| Benin | French (official), Fon, Yoruba, tribal languages |
| Bhutan | Dzongkha (official), Tibetan dialects, Nepalese dialects |
| Bolivia | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian |
| Botswana | English 2% (official), Setswana 78%, Kalanga 8%, Sekgalagadi 3% |
| Brazil | Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French |
| Brunei | Malay (official), English, Chinese |
| Bulgaria | Bulgarian 85%, Turkish 10%, Roma 4% |
| Burkina Faso | French (official); native African (Sudanic) languages 90% |
| Burundi | Kirundi and French (official), Swahili |
| Cambodia | Khmer 95% (official), French, English |
| Cameroon | French, English (both official); 24 major African language groups |
| Canada | English 59.3%, French 23.2% (both official); other 17.5% |
| Cape Verde | Portuguese, Criuolo |
| Central African Republic | French (official), Sangho (lingua franca, national), tribal languages |
| Chad | French, Arabic (both official); Sara; more than 120 languages and dialects |
| Chile | Spanish |
| China | Standard Chinese (Mandarin), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects |
| Colombia | Spanish |
| Comoros | Arabic and French (both official), Shikomoro (Swahili/Arabic blend) |
| Congo, Democratic Republic of the | French (official), Lingala, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba |
| Congo, Republic of | French (official), Lingala, Monokutuba, Kikongo, many local languages and dialects |
| Costa Rica | Spanish (official), English |
| Côte d'Ivoire | French (official) and African languages (Dioula esp.) |
| Croatia | Croatian 96% (official), other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, German) |
| Cuba | Spanish |
| Cyprus | Greek, Turkish (both official); English |
| Czech Republic | Czech |
| Denmark | Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (Inuit dialect), German; English is the predominant second language |
| Djibouti | French and Arabic (both official), Somali, Afar |
| Dominica | English (official) and French patois |
| Dominican Republic | Spanish |
| East Timor | Tetum, Portuguese (official); Bahasa Indonesia, English; other indigenous languages |
| Ecuador | Spanish (official), Quechua, other Amerindian languages |
| Egypt | Arabic (official), English and French widely understood |
| El Salvador | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) |
| Equatorial Guinea | Spanish, French (both official); pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Igbo |
| Eritrea | Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages |
| Estonia | Estonian 67% (official), Russian 30% |
| Ethiopia | Amharic, Tigrigna, Orominga, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, English, over 70 others |
| Fiji | English (official), Fijian, Hindustani |
| Finland | Finnish 92%, Swedish 6% (both official) |
| France | French 100% |
| Gabon | French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi |
| Gambia | English (official), Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, other indigenous |
| Georgia | Georgian 71% (official), Russian 9%, Armenian 7%, Azerbaijani 6%, other 7% |
| Germany | German |
| Ghana | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) |
| Greece | Greek 99% (official), English, French |
| Grenada | English (official), French patois |
| Guatemala | Spanish 60%, Amerindian languages 40% (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages) |
| Guinea | French (official), native tongues (Malinké, Susu, Fulani) |
| Guinea-Bissau | Portuguese (official), Criolo, African languages |
| Guyana | English (official), Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu |
| Haiti | Creole and French (both official) |
| Honduras | Spanish (official), Amerindian dialects; English widely spoken in business |
| Hungary | Magyar (Hungarian) 94%, other 6% |
| Iceland | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken |
| India | Hindi 30%, English, Bengali, Gujarati, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Kannada, Assamese, Sanskrit, Sindhi (all official); Hindi/Urdu; 1,600+ dialects |
| Indonesia | Bahasa Indonesia (official), English, Dutch, Javanese, and more than 580 other languages and dialects |
| Iran | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% |
| Iraq | Arabic (official), Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian |
| Ireland | English, Irish (Gaelic) (both official) |
| Israel | Hebrew (official), Arabic, English |
| Italy | Italian (official); German-, French-, and Slovene-speaking minorities |
| Jamaica | English, Jamaican Creole |
| Japan | Japanese |
| Jordan | Arabic (official), English |
| Kazakhstan | Kazak (Qazaq, state language) 64%; Russian (official, used in everyday business) 95% |
| Kenya | English (official), Swahili (national), and numerous indigenous languages |
| Kiribati | English (official), I-Kiribati (Gilbertese) |
| Korea, North | Korean |
| Korea, South | Korean, English widely taught |
| Kosovo | Albanian (official), Serbian (official), Bosnian, Turkish, Roma |
| Kuwait | Arabic (official), English |
| Kyrgyzstan | Kyrgyz, Russian (both official) |
| Laos | Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages |
| Latvia | Latvian 58% (official), Russian 38%, Lithuanian |
| Lebanon | Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian |
| Lesotho | English, Sesotho (both official); Zulu, Xhosa |
| Liberia | English 20% (official), some 20 ethnic-group languages |
| Libya | Arabic, Italian, and English widely understood in major cities |
| Liechtenstein | German (official), Alemannic dialect |
| Lithuania | Lithuanian 82% (official), Russian 8%, Polish 6% (2001) |
| Luxembourg | Luxermbourgish (national) French, German (both administrative) |
| Macedonia | Macedonian 67%, Albanian 25% (both official); Turkish 4%, Roma 2%, Serbian 1% |
| Madagascar | Malagasy and French (both official) |
| Malawi | Chichewa 57.2% (official), Chinyanja 12.8%, Chiyao 10.1%, Chitumbuka 9.5%, Chisena 2.7%, Chilomwe 2.4%, Chitonga 1.7%, other 3.6% |
| Malaysia | Bahasa Melayu (Malay, official), English, Chinese dialects; several indigenous languages |
| Maldives | Maldivian Dhivehi (official); English spoken by most government officials |
| Mali | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages |
| Malta | Maltese and English (both official) |
| Marshall Islands | Marshallese 98% (two major dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family), English widely spoken as a second language (both official); Japanese |
| Mauritania | Hassaniya Arabic (official), Pulaar, Soninke, French, Wolof |
| Mauritius | English less than 1% (official), Creole 81%, Bojpoori 12%, French 3% (2000) |
| Mexico | Spanish, various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional indigenous languages |
| Micronesia | English (official, common), Chukese, Pohnpeian, Yapase, Kosrean, Ulithian, Woleaian, Nukuoro, Kapingamarangi |
| Moldova | Moldovan (official; virtually the same as Romanian), Russian, Gagauz (a Turkish dialect) |
| Monaco | French (official), English, Italian, Monégasque |
| Mongolia | Mongolian, 90%; also Turkic and Russian (1999) |
| Montenegro | Serbian/Montenegrin (Ijekavian dialect—official) |
| Morocco | Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often used for business, government, and diplomacy |
| Mozambique | Portuguese 9% (official; second language of 27%), Emakhuwa 26%, Xichangana 11%, Elomwe 8%, Cisena 7%, Echuwabo 6%, other Mozambican languages 32% (1997) |
| Myanmar | Burmese, minority languages |
| Namibia | English 7% (official), Afrikaans 60%, German 32%; indigenous languages: Oshivambo, Herero, Nama |
| Nauru | Nauruan (official), English |
| Nepal | Nepali 48% (official), Maithali 12%, Bhojpuri 7%, Tharu 6%, Tamang 5%, others. English spoken by many in government and business |
| Netherlands | Dutch, Frisian (both official) |
| New Zealand | English, Maori (both official) |
| Nicaragua | Spanish 98% (official); English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast (1995) |
| Niger | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
| Nigeria | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Fulani, and more than 200 others |
| Norway | Bokmål Norwegian, Nynorsk Norwegian (both official); small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities (Sami is official in six municipalities) |
| Oman | Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects |
| Pakistan | Urdu 8%, English (both official); Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Siraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, and other |
| Palau | Palauan 64.7%, English 9.4%, Filipino 13.5%, Chinese 5.7%, other languages |
| Palestinian State (proposed) | Arabic, Hebrew, English |
| Panama | Spanish (official), English 14%, many bilingual |
| Papua New Guinea | Tok Pisin (Melanesian Pidgin, the lingua franca), Hiri Motu (in Papua region), English 1%-2%; 715 indigenous languages |
| Paraguay | Spanish, Guaraní (both official) |
| Peru | Spanish, Quéchua (both official); Aymara; many minor Amazonian languages |
| Philippines | Filipino (based on Tagalog), English (both official); eight major dialects: Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinense |
| Poland | Polish 98% (2002) |
| Portugal | Portuguese (official), Mirandese (official, but locally used) |
| Qatar | Arabic (official); English a common second language |
| Romania | Romanian (official), Hungarian, German |
| Russia | Russian, others |
| Rwanda | Kinyarwanda, French, and English (all official); Kiswahili in commercial centers |
| St. Kitts and Nevis | English |
| St. Lucia | English (official), French patois |
| St. Vincent and the Grenadines | English, French patois |
| Samoa | Samoan, English |
| San Marino | Italian |
| São Tomé and Príncipe | Portuguese (official) |
| Saudi Arabia | Arabic |
| Senegal | French (official); Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka |
| Serbia | Serbian (official); Romanian, Hungarian, Slovak, and Croatian (all official in Vojvodina); Albanian (official in Kosovo) |
| Seychelles | Seselwa Creole 92%, English 5%, French (all official) (2002) |
| Sierra Leone | English (official), Mende (southern vernacular), Temne (northern vernacular), Krio (lingua franca) |
| Singapore | Mandarin 35%, English 23%, Malay 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9% (2000) |
| Slovakia | Slovak 84% (official), Hungarian 11%, Roma 2%, Ukrainian 1% (2001) |
| Slovenia | Slovenian 91%, Serbo-Croatian 5% (2002) |
| Solomon Islands | English 1%-2% (official), Melanesian pidgin (lingua franca), 120 indigenous languages |
| Somalia | Somali (official), Arabic, English, Italian |
| South Africa | IsiZulu 23.8%, IsiXhosa 17.6%, Afrikaans 13.3%, Sepedi 9.4%, English 8.2%, Setswana 8.2%, Sesotho 7.9%, Xitsonga 4.4%, other 7.2% |
| South Sudan | English (official), Arabic (includes Juba and Sudanese variants) (official), regional languages include Dinka, Nuer, Bari, Zande, Shilluk |
| Spain | Castilian Spanish 74% (official nationwide); Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2% (each official regionally) |
| Sri Lanka | Sinhala 74% (official and national), Tamil 18% (national), other 8%; English is commonly used in government and spoken competently by about 10% |
| Sudan | Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English |
| Suriname | Dutch (official), Surinamese (lingua franca), English widely spoken, Hindustani, Javanese |
| Swaziland | English, siSwati (both official) |
| Sweden | Swedish, small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities |
| Switzerland | German 64%, French 20%, Italian 7% (all official); Romansch 0.5% (national) |
| Syria | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood |
| Taiwan | Chinese (Mandarin, official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects |
| Tajikistan | Tajik (official), Russian widely used in government and business |
| Tanzania | Swahili, English (both official); Arabic; many local languages |
| Thailand | Thai (Siamese), English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects |
| Togo | French (official, commerce); Ewé, Mina (south); Kabyé, Dagomba (north); and many dialects |
| Tonga | Tongan (an Austronesian language), English |
| Trinidad and Tobago | English (official), Hindi, French, Spanish, Chinese |
| Tunisia | Arabic (official, commerce), French (commerce) |
| Turkey | Turkish (official), Kurdish, Dimli, Azeri, Kabardian |
| Turkmenistan | Turkmen 72%; Russian 12%; Uzbek 9%, other 7% |
| Tuvalu | Tuvaluan, English, Samoan, Kiribati (on the island of Nui) |
| Uganda | English (official), Ganda or Luganda, Swahili, Arabic |
| Ukraine | Ukrainian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian, Russian |
| United Arab Emirates | Arabic (official), Persian, English, Hindi, Urdu |
| United Kingdom | English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic |
| United States | English 82%, Spanish 11% |
| Uruguay | Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero |
| Uzbekistan | Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4% |
| Vanuatu | Bislama 23%, English 2%, French 1%; more than 100 local languages 73% |
| Vatican City (Holy See) | Italian, Latin, French, various other languages |
| Venezuela | Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects |
| Vietnam | Vietnamese (official); English; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) |
| Western Sahara (proposed state) | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic |
| Yemen | Arabic |
| Zambia | English (official); major vernaculars: Bemba, Kaonda, Lozi, Lunda, Luvale, Nyanja, Tonga; about 70 other indigenous languages |
| Zimbabwe | English (official), Shona, Ndebele, numerous minor tribal dialects |