As the official language in 21 countries, Spanish continues to soar as one of the most spoken languages across the globe. As such, businesses that want to enter new markets should consider Spanish as their next target language. Here are some of the reasons why translating products and services to Spanish is a worthwhile investment.

Spanish is Widely Spoken

With more than 572 million people speaking Spanish worldwide, the language is second only to Chinese in the number of speakers. Of the people who speak Spanish, 477 million are native speakers.

Additionally, more than 41 million people in the United States speak Spanish as a first language, and the United States is projected to have the largest Spanish speaking population worldwide by 2050. Even more amazing is the prediction that approximately 754 million people globally are expected to speak the language by 2060.

Learning Spanish is Good for Business

Spanish is considered to be a Growth Language as a result of the population increase and financial progress in Spanish speaking nations. As an example, because countries in South America experienced tremendous economic growth, the continent has become more renowned for its global economic position with its exportation of agricultural products and minerals.

Spanish is a Leading Language in Education

With Spanish being so widely spoken, it will come as no surprise that Spanish is also prominent in many education systems across the globe. For instance, Spanish is the most studied language in the United States at all school levels, including in universities. In fact, more students are registered in Spanish classes than all other languages.

Along with the United States, China is another country that is focusing on teaching Spanish. Furthermore, with more than 21 million people worldwide studying Spanish as a foreign language, the language joins French and Mandarin as the second most studied language across the globe.

Spanish is a Fascinating Language

Spanish is a fun and interesting language in countless ways. Here are 10 fun facts about the language that make it unique:

  1. Spanish is popular online. With 377 million people communicating in Spanish on social media, Spanish ranks second in the most used languages on social media networks. Additionally, the use of Spanish on the internet has increased by a surprising 800%, making it the third most commonly used language online.
  2. The language has borrowed some of its words from English. One example is the word fútbol, which came from football.
  3. Spanish expands when translated from English. Because of the poetic and expressive nature of the language, Spanish texts can be long and can expand by as much as 25% when translated from English.
  4. The most used letter in Spanish is E. This largely comes from the fact that the most commonly used word is the preposition “de.”
  5. Spanish can be rather easy to learn. After studying Spanish for about 22 to 24 weeks, native English speakers can become generally proficient in reading and speaking Spanish.
  6. Spanish is one of the world’s most phonetic languages. Once you know how to spell a word in Spanish, the chances of being able to pronounce it are excellent.
  7. About 8% of Spanish words can be traced back to Arabic. As a result of the Arab presence in Spain for nine centuries, many Arabic words stayed with the language. One example is the word azúcar, which means sugar.
  8. Spanish is called both español and castellano. Spanish speakers use the two words interchangeably. Españolmeans it comes from Spain, and castellano means it comes from Castilla, Spain.
  9. Spanish is a Romance language. Romance languages are also called Latin languages, since they evolved from Latin that was spoken between the sixth and the ninth centuries A.D.
  10. Some words can’t be translated. Similar to other languages, Spanish has unique words that simply cannot be translated into other languages.

With the usage of Spanish surging worldwide, Spanish translation services are needed more than ever. As your company embarks on Spanish translations, partner with Ulatus for top-notch translation and localization services.

Summary

Spanish continues to grow exponentially as one of the most spoken languages worldwide. With predictions that the language will become even more widely used, now is the time to add Spanish to your localization and translation plans.