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10 Most Common Spoken Languages in the United States

February 10, 2021

You will often come across a reference for the United States, where some will call it a melting pot when talking about the region’s cultural diversification. The cultural mixture is the component that makes it an exciting place to be. When in the United States, you expose yourself to a possibility of life-altering experiences through food, music, and fashion from different cultures. Languages, however, have a unique touch about them. 

Did you know that although English is the commonly spoken language in the United States, there is no official language?  The reason behind this is the fact that the people in different cultures often maintain their languages. The US Census Bureau took the liberty to prepare a report giving detail on at least the 350 languages spoken across the US. In this review, we will focus on languages spoken by most residents within the US.

    1. English

      Although English is the most spoken language in the United States, with 254 million speakers, many may find it surprising that it is not the official language. The
      matter concerning the official language has sparked debate in the past. The tussle is between activists who argue on a pro-immigrant position and the conservativisms who are more political about it.The result is that some states recognize English as the official language, which is not the case on a federal level. Although English is the most widely spoken language in the United States, it happens in various versions. There are at least 24 English dialects in the US, making every region a world of its own.
    2. SpanishAccording to sources, Spanish is the fastest growing language in the United States. The latest research shows that the current number of Spanish speakers in the United States stands at 43,200,000, resulting from a 233 percent increase between 1880 and 2013. The results revealed that there are more Spanish speakers in the United States than there are in Spain.People with Hispanic origins mainly dwell in developed areas like New York, Los Angeles, and Miami. Spanish-speaking communities also spread across the Southwest of the United States in California, Arizona, Texas, and New Mexico. It is not uncommon to discover that some Spanish words often intertwine with American English.

United States Common Languages

    1. ChineseWe found out that the Chinese language found its way throughout America during the gold rush in the 1800s. This period was around the time when Chinese immigrants moved to California in search of gold. Thus, the first establishment of Chinatowns in San Francisco.Chinatowns are Chinese American societies concentrated with Chinese culture from food to fashion. Chinese speakers include Cantonese, Mandarin, and other speakers of similar Asian descent. The largest Chinese speakers are in California, New York, and Texas. In total, there are 2,900,000 Chinese speakers across the United States.
    2. TagalogMost people would readily admit that they have not heard the name Tagalog before. Tagalog is Filipino, making this list of the top spoken languages in the United States. Filipino is the official language in the Philippines.About 1,610,000 Filipino speakers live in the United States, with 43 % of them living in California. There is also a significant chunk of that population living in Hawaii and New York City. There were two waves of Filipino Immigration into the US for various reasons. 
    3. VietnameseVietnamese Immigrants found their way into the US during the war.  Around 300,000 Vietnamese immigrants moved into the US between 2000 and 2014. The reason for immigration during that time was to reunite with the groups that immigrated previously. They settled mainly in California and Texas. The concentration of Vietnamese speakers in the mentioned areas increased between 2010 and 2014. There are about 1,400,000 Vietnamese speakers in the United States.

vietnamese census bureau

    1. FrenchWe have to include French Creole and Cajun when talking about French speakers in the US. Creole French history starts back in the seventeenth century when France had a hold on Louisiana. The mixture of West African languages and French by slaves in Louisiana birthed Creole.More and more Americans speak French in the modern-day, while a few French Creole speakers remain. There is a significant infusion of American English and French. The number of French speakers in the US today comes down to about 1,281,300.
    2. KoreanSome things like immigration never end. Korean immigrants started moving into the United States in the 1880s. Most of the immigration happened after the Korean war ended, and the restrictions concerning Asian Immigration ended in 1965. Over 1million Koreans reside in the US currently.Most Korean speakers settled in California. Korean culture has a lot of growing influence in the US, with Korean food and Korean pop gaining popularity every other day. Nowadays, there are even Koreatowns where you are likely to experience Korean culture at its best.
    3. GermanThe German language got introduced into the US during the creation of colonies. The German language makes this list one of the most spoken languages in the US, with at least one million speakers in the region.German speakers seemed to take a back seat after the world wars since there was controversy about patriotism at the time. Over time, however, the controversy faded, and immigrants were pouring into the US. Nowadays, learning the German language is part of the curriculum.

German Language Census

  1. ArabicJust like English, Arabic has its variants. The language is common among people of Middle Eastern descent. The US has about 900,000 Arabic speakers making it one of the most spoken languages in the United States of America. Arabic speakers concentrate in Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles. Muslim -Americans use Arabic for regional purposes.
  2. RussianIt is safe to say that Russian is one of the most recognized languages, primarily due to media influences. Russian immigration happened between 1970 and 1990. The Russians who moved into the US ensured that they maintained their culture and language.The language has 825,000 speakers. Russian speakers live in Alaska, New York, California, and Pennsylvania. It is one of the most exciting languages to make this list for the command it demands when spoken. There continues to be the formation of Russian-speaking neighborhoods in the developed cities in the US.

Professional Translations for Every Language

Are you looking for a team to help you with work involving different languages? Etcetera Language Group Inc offers translation services for documents and desktop publishing services to clients from various backgrounds. Our competent team can translate documents from English to any language of your choosing, such as Spanish, Japanese, French, Arabic, and others. Contact us to find out more about the services we offer.

 

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