When you think about language, what comes to mind? Of all the ideas about language you could ponder, you probably are not thinking about how Russian was the very first language spoken in space. Yet, with 7117 languages in the world today, that tidbit is just one of the countless amazing language facts that will surprise you. Here are 20 more fascinating snippets of information about languages:

  1. Every 98 minutes, a new word is created. Additionally, an average of 5400 new English words are generated each year, yet only 1000 of the new words end up being actively used by the general population.
  2. You can slow down your aging process by learning a second language. Since learning a new language requires a significant amount of memorization, studying a language naturally enhances memory. As such, being bilingual can help postpone the onset of dementia by a number of years.
  3. More than 1700 words were developed by William Shakespeare. As a master playwright and poet, William Shakespeare invented numerous terms by combining words that were not typically used together. In addition, he changed nouns into verbs and verbs into adjectives, as well as added prefixes and suffixes to various words.
  4. Thousands of English words were derived from French terms. As a result of William the Conqueror gaining the British throne in the Battle of Hastings, more than 40,000 English words originated from the French language.
  5. The world’s largest alphabet consists of 74 characters. Khmer, the official language of Cambodia, has the longest alphabet across the globe; it includes 23 vowels, 33 consonants, and 12 independent vowels.
  6. The United States has no official language. A common misconception is that English is the official language in the United States. However, with so many languages used in the country, there is no official language.
  7. More than 200 fake languages have been created. In certain books, films, and television shows, readers and viewers will come across bogus languages. Perhaps one of the most popular artificial languages is Klingon from Star Trek.
  8. Asia is the continent with the most languages. With 2301 spoken languages, Asia has the highest number of languages worldwide. Africa is a close second with 2138 languages.
  9. The world’s smallest alphabet has only a handful of letters. The Papuan language of Rotokas only has 12 letters, ranking it as the language with the smallest alphabet.
  10. More than 300 different languages are spoken in London. In fact, more languages are spoken in London than any other city worldwide.
  11. The English language has its roots in Germany, not England. Although the English language has its home in England, its roots are linked to the Angles people, who lived in the West German seaside.
  12. More than 200 languages are extinct. Languages with no surviving speakers, data, or records are considered to be extinct. By the end of the century, 50% to 90% of the world’s languages could become nonexistent.
  13. The English alphabet has gotten smaller. At one time, the alphabet had 29 letters, compared to the 26-letter alphabet that was solidified in the 16th
  14. The most difficult language to learn is Mandarin. As the most commonly used language across the globe, Mandarin is also considered to be the most challenging to learn. Because of its tonal nature, it is extremely nuanced. It also has a long list of characters to memorize.
  15. English has the most words. With more than 250,000 words, the English language has the largest number of words of all other languages.
  16. Half the population of the world speaks 23 languages. Although there are thousands of languages in the world, more than half of the people across the globe speak only 23 languages.
  17. People in South Korea and North Korea speak different languages. Because the two countries have been separated for such a long time, they each have unique vocabularies and rules of grammar.
  18. The English word “alphabet” comes from Greek letters. Specifically, the word is a combination of alpha and beta, the first two letters of the Greek alphabet.
  19. The German language includes three genders. Although most languages have either masculine or feminine, German includes masculine, feminine, and neuter.
  20. There is a language that is comprised of whistles. As one example, Silbo Gomero is a whistled language used on the island of La Gomera in the Canary Islands.

Language is a fascinating subject, especially because of the countless ways it helps people communicate and learn. Considering that numerous linguists have traced the origin of language to 100,000 BC, it is a subject that is rich in history. With all that language has to offer, consider crossing borders with your product or service to reach people who speak different languages.

Summary

With more than 7000 languages in the world today, there are some amazing facts about language that will surprise you.