The English language is a widely distributed language and is the official language of many countries. It is also extensively used as a second language in several countries around the world. English forms part of the Indo-European family of languages.
An estimated 400 - 450 million people speak English as their first language. A recent estimate is that 1.9 billion people, nearly a third of the world's population, have basic English language proficiency. English is the dominant international language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, diplomacy and the Internet.
English is currently the second most commonly spoken language in the world behind Chinese, which has over 1 billion-plus speakers. In the European Union, more people choose to learn English than any other language. It is also the most studied language in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
An estimated 400 - 450 million people speak English as their first language. A recent estimate is that 1.9 billion people, nearly a third of the world's population, have basic English language proficiency. English is the dominant international language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, diplomacy and the Internet.
English is currently the second most commonly spoken language in the world behind Chinese, which has over 1 billion-plus speakers. In the European Union, more people choose to learn English than any other language. It is also the most studied language in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.