The 10 most spoken languages in the world

[Rossiya]

There are only six languages listed there, what are the other two?

English and German.

 

[PiMan]

So if you know English and German, why does that post suggest you would also know Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Italian, French and Romanian? I see no such suggestion.

 

[Rossiya]

I also speak Italian.

 

[Mirc]

That's mutual intelligibility, doesn't mean you can actually speak Spanish if you speak Italian.

 

[PiMan]

So you do know more than two...

But regardless, the post doesn't suggest you will be fluent in all those other languages. It suggests that you will be able to comprehend roughly what something written in Spanish, Portuguese or Catalan says.

It even works to a minor degree for English speaking people to understand French, because of how much influence French has had on the English language.

 

[Huayna Capac357]

Most people that are reading this know at least 2 languages. English and other language. Here is a list of the 10 most spoken languages in the world, enjoy!:

10. French
Number of speakers: 129 million
Often called the most romantic language in the world, French is spoken in tons of countries, including Belgium, Canada, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Haiti. Oh, and France too.
To say "hello" in French, say "Bonjour" (bone-JOOR).

9. Malay-Indonesian
Number of speakers: 159 million
Malay-Indonesian is spoken - surprise - in Malaysia and Indonesia. Actually, we kinda fudged the numbers on this one because there are many dialects of Malay, the most popular of which is Indonesian. But they're all pretty much based on the same root language, which makes it the ninth most-spoken in the world.
Indonesia is a fascinating place; a nation made up of over 13,000 islands it is the sixth most populated country in the world. Malaysia borders on two of the larger parts of Indonesia (including the island of Borneo), and is mostly known for its capital city of Kuala Lumpur.
To say "hello" in Indonesian, say "Selamat pagi" (se-LA-maht PA-gee).

8. Russian
Number of speakers: 193 million
Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and Yakov Smirnoff are among the millions of Russian speakers out there. One of the six languages in the UN, Russian is spoken not only in the Mother Country, but also in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and the U.S. (to name just a few places).
To say "hello" in Russian, say "Zdravstvuite" (ZDRAST-vet-yah)

7. Bengali
Number of speakers: 211 million
In Bangladesh, a country of 120+ million people, just about everybody speaks Bengali. And because Bangladesh is virtually surrounded by India (where the population is growing so fast, just breathing the air can get you pregnant), the number of Bengali speakers in the world is much higher than most people would expect.
To say "hello" in Bengali, say "Ei Je" (EYE-jay).

6. Portuguese
Number of speakers: 220 million
Think of Portuguese as the little language that could. In the 12th Century, Portugal won its independence from Spain and expanded all over the world with the help of its famous explorers like Vasco da Gama and Prince Henry the Navigator. (Good thing Henry became a navigator . . . could you imagine if a guy named "Prince Henry the Navigator" became a florist?) Because Portugal got in so early on the exploring game, the language established itself all over the world, especially in Brazil (where it's the national language), Macau, Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Mozambique.
To say "hello" in Portuguese, say "Olá" (Au-la).

5. Arabic
Number of speakers: 246 million
Arabic, one of the world's oldest languages, is spoken in the Middle East, with speakers found in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Furthermore, because Arabic is the language of the Koran, millions of Moslems in other countries speak Arabic as well. So many people have a working knowledge of Arabic, in fact, that in 1974 it was made the sixth official language of the United Nations.
To say "hello" in Arabic, say "Al salaam a'alaykum" (Ahl sah-LAHM ah ah-LAY-koom).

4. Spanish
Number of speakers: 392 million
Aside from all of those kids who take it in high school, Spanish is spoken in just about every South American and Central American country, not to mention Spain, Cuba, and the U.S. There is a particular interest in Spanish in the U.S., as many English words are borrowed from the language, including: tornado, bonanza, patio, quesadilla, enchilada, and taco grande supreme.
To say "hello" in Spanish, say "Hola" (OH-la).

3. Hindustani
Number of speakers: 497 million
Hindustani is the primary language of India's crowded population, and it encompasses a huge number of dialects (of which the most commonly spoken is Hindi). While many predict that the population of India will soon surpass that of China, the prominence of English in India prevents Hindustani from surpassing the most popular language in the world. If you're interested in learning a little Hindi, there's a very easy way: rent an Indian movie. The film industry in India is the most prolific in the world, making thousands of action/romance/musicals every year.
To say "hello" in Hindustani, say "Namaste" (Nah-MAH-stay).

2. English
Number of speakers: 508 million
While English doesn't have the most speakers, it is the official language of more countries than any other language. Its speakers hail from all around the world, including the U.S., Australia, England, Zimbabwe, the Caribbean, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Canada. We'd tell you more about English, but you probably feel pretty comfortable with the language already. Let's just move on to the most popular language in the world.
To say "hello" in English, say "What's up, freak?" (watz-UP-freek).
And the first is:
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1. Mandarin
Number of speakers: 1 billion+
Surprise, surprise, the most widely spoken language on the planet is based in the most populated country on the planet. Beating second-place English by a 2 to 1 ratio, but don't let that lull you into thinking that Mandarin is easy to learn. Speaking Mandarin can be really tough, because each word can be pronounced in four ways (or "tones"), and a beginner will invariably have trouble distinguishing one tone from another. But if over a billion people could do it, so could you. Try saying hello!
To say "hello" in Mandarin, say "Ni hao" (Nee HaOW). ("Hao" is pronounced as one syllable, but the tone requires that you let your voice drop midway, and then raise it again at the end.)

Mandarin has only c. 750 million speakers. English has 1 billion+ speakers. Otherwise, great

 

[Rossiya]

So you do know more than two...

But regardless, the post doesn't suggest you will be fluent in all those other languages. It suggests that you will be able to comprehend roughly what something written in Spanish, Portuguese or Catalan says.

It even works to a minor degree for English speaking people to understand French, because of how much influence French has had on the English language.

I'm sure you know that German is nothing to do with the romance languages.

That original post was in response to another post, and it was saying that the idea that Spanish-speakers must learn a little Italian before being able to understand it was wrong.

A Spanish-speaker doesn't just know Italian, or comprehend Italian by default. Like the person was saying, a Spanish-speaker will need to know a little first.

 

[philippe]

Wallonian = French
Romansh included in the Italian group (even though it shouldn't be)

then you just wasted your linguistic credibility with me.
hey, let's wiki "walloon":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walloon_language

Walloon (Walon) is a Romance language spoken as a second language by some in Wallonia, Belgium. It belongs to the langue d'oïl language family, whose most prominent member is the French language, but should not be considered a French dialect: a French speaking person can only understand Walloon with difficulty, especially in its eastern forms. Walloon should not be confused with Belgian French, which differs from the French spoken in France only in some minor points of vocabulary and pronunciation

just as I learned, in, you know, Belgium, were Walloons live.

A famous Walloon:

I agree, it's just French.

bah, flatchests.

 

[PiMan]

I'm sure you know that German is nothing to do with the romance languages.

That original post was in response to another post, and it was saying that the idea that Spanish-speakers must learn a little Italian before being able to understand it was wrong.

A Spanish-speaker doesn't just know Italian, or comprehend Italian by default. Like the person was saying, a Spanish-speaker will need to know a little first.

You said that the post suggested you would know eight languages, when you actually only know two. Now you say you know three.

The spelling and pronunciation of Spanish is very similar to Italian. You would be able to look at some words in Spanish and guess what they mean. And you would likely be very close to right.

 

[Bast]

bah, flatchests.

You are so naughty, philippe.

 

[Zenon_pt]

What does "seca" mean?

My Romance vocabulary knowledge tells me it should be the female for "dry" (considering Italian "secca", Romanian "seaca"), but my instinct tells me that's not quite what it means.

Yes, Seca it can be dry, a period of time that is so dry and hot, but also means, sometimes, dull or boring. The Portuguese expression is: "Que seca!" = what a dreg! Boring! There is nothing to do!

Yep Mirc you are right, over this one!!!

 

[Rossiya]

You said that the post suggested you would know eight languages, when you actually only know two. Now you say you know three.

The spelling and pronunciation of Spanish is very similar to Italian. You would be able to look at some words in Spanish and guess what they mean. And you would likely be very close to right.

But German is nothing to do with the romance languages...

The spelling and pronunciation of Spanish is not very similar to Italian.

 

[Slaughter]

I know mainly Portuguese and also English. I can understand parts of Spanish and one time, I read something written in Italian and understood part of it. I read the Scots wikipedia and I understood most of it, but it is a really weird language. Scots = Orkish.

Spanish is pretty much portuguese, except its spoken by fags. Same for French.




Yes, I know I offended a good part of the world's population at the same time. FEEL OFFENDED, DAMNIT.

 

[Mirc]

Yes, Seca it can be dry, a period of time that is so dry and hot, but also means, sometimes, dull or boring. The Portuguese expression is: "Que seca!" = what a dreg! Boring! There is nothing to do!

Yep Mirc you are right, over this one!!!

Ah! We have a similar expression over here: [something] "ma seaca" (something is annoying or boring me terribly - making me feel empty and with no enthusiasm about anything).

 

[Huayna Capac357]

sec=dry in french, so that's another cognate form...

 

[Mirc]

Hah, identical with our version in both spelling end pronounciation, that's rare with French!

 

[Nylan]

But German is nothing to do with the romance languages...

The spelling and pronunciation of Spanish is not very similar to Italian.

I can follow some Italian with my limited Spanish, so I'm not sure what your difficulty is. If anything, I would think the reverse would be easier.

 

[LuckyAC]

Due to speaking French (and my limited exposure to Spanish), I can understand pretty well an overheard Spanish conversation involving a non-native speaker, since it tends to be pretty slow and simple. No way can I keep up when they are babbling away on a Telenovela or something, though.

 

[PiMan]

But German is nothing to do with the romance languages...

The spelling and pronunciation of Spanish is not very similar to Italian.

So you're telling me that I would understand more Spanish than you, even though the only language I really know anything of is English.

As an example of what I'm talking about, I will do my best to manually translate Spanish words in a health and safety precautions booklet.
Original:

FOLLETO DE PRECAUCIONES SOBRE SALUD Y SEGURIDAD
INFORMACION DE SEGURIDAD IMPORTANTE: LEE LAS SIGUIENTES NOTAS DE ADVERTENCIA ANTES DE JUGAR CON LAS CONSOLAS NINTENDO DS O NINTENDO DS LITE. EN EL CASO DE QUE UN NINO DECORTA EDAD VAYA A UTILIZAR UNA DE LAS CONSOLAS, SE RECOMIENDA QUE UN ADULTO LE LEA Y EXPLIUE PREVIAMENTE EL CONTENIDO DEL MANUAL. DE LO CONTRARIO, PODRIA AUMENTAR EL RIESGO DE QUE SE PRODUZCAN LESIONES.
PRECAUCIONES CONTRA LA EPILEPSIA

Straight translation attempt:

* of precautions * * * *
Information of * importance: * the * notice of advertisment * of * * the console Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite. * * case of * one * of * * * * utilise one of the console, * recommend * one adult * * * explicit prevent * content of manual. * * contrary, * * * * * * * production *.
Precautions * * Epilepsy

Interpretation of translation:

Booklet of precautions
Information of significant importance: These notes of advertisement regarding the consoles, Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite. Use the consoles as they were intended, we recommend an adult prevents explicit content from the manual. On the contrary, (something about the product).
Precautions about Epilepsy

Babelfish translate:

PAMPHLET OF PRECAUTIONS ON HEALTH AND SECURITY
INFORMATION OF IMPORTANT SECURITY: IT READS THE FOLLOWING NOTES OF WARNING BEFORE PLAYING WITH THE CONSOLES NINTENDO DS OR NINTENDO DS LITE. IN CASE A YOUNG BOY IS GOING TO USE ONE OF CONSOLES, HE IS RECOMMENDED THAT AN ADULT READS TO HIM AND EXPLIUE PREVIOUSLY THE CONTENT OF THE MANUAL. OTHERWISE, IT COULD INCREASE THE RISK OF WHICH INJURIES TAKE PLACE.
PRECAUTIONS AGAINST THE EPILEPSY

English version supplied: (notable differences with even an actual translation)

Health and safety precautions booklet
Important safety information - Read the following warnings before you or your child play video games. If this product is to be used by young children, this manual should be read and explained to them by an adult.
Seizure warning

Are you honestly saying you could not do any better than I did?

 

[Mirc]

If that's not understandable for an Italian, I don't know what Italians you are talking about.

Here's the comparison with Romanian:

Spoiler :

FOLLETO DE PRECAUCIONES. SOBRE... SALUD......Y...SEGURIDAD
FOITA....DE..PRECAUTII......ASUPRA..SANATATII..SI..SECURITATII
(it would be even closer if we didn't have complex case systems)

INFORMACION DE SEGURIDAD . IMPORTANTE: LEE LAS SIGUIENTES NOTAS DE ADVERTENCIA ... ANTES
INFORMATIE...DE SECURITATE IMPORTANTA: CITITI URMATOARELE NOTE...DE.AVERTISMENT INAINTE
(think "in-antes" for the last word to see where the connection comes from)

DE ..... JUGAR CON LAS CONSOLAS NINTENDO DS. O .NINTENDO DS LITE. EN EL CASO DE QUE UN NINO
DE A SE JUCA .CU.......CONSOLELE NINTENDO DS ORI NINTENDO DS LITE. IN .... CAZ ..... CA . UN COPIL

DECORTA .. EDAD VAYA A UTILIZAR UNA DE LAS CONSOLAS, SE RECOMIENDA QUE UN ADULTO ... LE
DE SCURTA ETATE VA .....UTILIZA...UNA DINTRE CONSOLE, ..SE .RECOMANDA CA .UN ADULT.. SA LE
(sounds a bit awkward here worded this way but not incorrect)


LEA ......... Y EXPLIUE PREVIAMENTE EL CONTENIDO DEL MANUAL.
CITEASCA SI.EXPLICE PREVENTINV ......CONTINUTUL .....MANUALULUI

DE LO CONTRARIO, .PODRIA .AUMENTAR EL RIESGO DE QUE SE PRODUZCAN ...LESIONES.
IN CAZ CONTRAR, SE POATE AUGMENTA .... RISCUL DE .......... PRODUCERE A LEZIUNILOR

PRECAUCIONES CONTRA LA EPILEPSIA
PRECAUTII ..... CONTRA ... EPILEPSIEI



red = words that wouldn't be understandable for a normal Romanian but which I picked up in my trips to various Romance countries.

Now, Spanish spoken fast is almost impossible to understand, but that's not what this is about, is it?