| Population |
28,173,600 in Spain, 72.8% of the population (1986). Population total all countries 322,200,000 to 358,000,000 first language users (1999 WA--source for the second figure), 417,000,000 including second language users (1999 WA). |
| Region |
Central and southern Spain and the Canary Islands. Also spoken in 43 other countries including Andorra, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Finland, France. |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO, CASTILIAN |
| Dialects |
ANDALUSIAN, MURCIAN, ARAGONESE, NAVARRESE, CASTILIAN, CANARY ISLANDS SPANISH, AMERICAN SPANISH. |
| Classification |
Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, West Iberian, Castilian. |
| Comments |
Leonese has similarities to Asturian, and may be extinct. 89% lexical similarity with Portuguese, 85% with Catalan, 82% with Italian, 76% with Sardinian, 75% with French, 74% with Rheto-Romance, 71% with Rumanian. Most mother tongue speakers of other languages in Spain use Spanish as second language. The Aragonese dialect of Spanish is different from the Aragonese language. Official language. Dictionary. Grammar. SVO; prepositions; genitives, relatives after noun heads; articles, numerals before noun heads; adjectives before or after noun heads depending on whether it is evaluative or descriptive; question word initial; (C(C))V(C); nontonal. Christian. Bible 1553-1979. |
| Andorra |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
24,600 in Andorra, 60% of population (1986). |
| Alternate names |
CASTILIAN |
| Comments |
Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Argentina |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
33,000,000 in Argentina (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Belize |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
80,477 in Belize (1991 census). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
Radio programs, TV. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Bolivia |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
3,483,700 in Bolivia (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Chile |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
13,800,000 in Chile, including 25% Spanish, 66% mestizo (1995). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Colombia |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
34,000,000 in Colombia (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Costa Rica |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
3,300,000 in Costa Rica (1995 estimate). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Cuba |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
10,000,000 in Cuba (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Dominican Republic |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
6,886,000 in Dominican Republic (1995 estimate), 87% of the population. |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Ecuador |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
9,500,000 in Ecuador (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Christian. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| El Salvador |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
5,900,000 in El Salvador (1995), or 92.3% of the population (1982 Barrett). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Equatorial Guinea |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
11,500 in Equatorial Guinea (1993 Johnstone). |
| Comments |
Official language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| France |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Alternate names |
CASTILLIAN |
| Comments |
Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Gibraltar |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Comments |
Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Guatemala |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
4,673,000 in Guatemala (1995 estimate). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Honduras |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
5,600,000 in Honduras (1996). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Mexico |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
86,211,000 first language speakers in Mexico (1995), 88% of the population. |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Morocco |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
20,000 in Morocco (1993 Johnstone). |
| Comments |
Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Nicaragua |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
4,347,000 in Nicaragua (1995 estimate). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Panama |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
2,100,000 in Panama (1995 estimate). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Paraguay |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
110,000 in Paraguay (1979 estimate). |
| Comments |
Used in education and government. National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Peru |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
20,000,000 in Peru (1995 estimate). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Philippines |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
2,658 (1990 census). |
| Comments |
Formerly the official language. Used by a few families as mother tongue. Christian. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Puerto Rico |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
3,437,120 speakers in Puerto Rico, 90% of the population (1996). |
| Comments |
Some dialects are considered to be archaic. National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
| |
|
| Trinidad and Tobago |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Comments |
Users seem to be second language users only. Frequent contact with Venezuelan fishing communities that lie nine miles off the coast of Trinidad. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Uruguay |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
3,000,000 in Uruguay (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| USA |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
22,400,000 in USA, 8.9% of the population (1990 census). |
| Alternate names |
ESPAÑOL, CASTELLANO |
| Comments |
Population has increased 61% or more since 1970. Official language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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|
| Venezuela |
| Language name |
SPANISH |
| Population |
21,480,000 in Venezuela (1995 estimate). |
| Comments |
National language. Bible 1553-1979. See main entry under Spain. |
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