The European Day of Language

Languages of Europe

There are about 225 indigenous languages in Europe – roughly 3% of the world's total. Most of the European languages are of Indo-European origin.

Since the end of the 18th century, the most widespread language of Europe (both in terms of geography and the number of native speakers) is Russian. It is followed by German (approx. 95 mil.), English and French (each by 65 mil.), Italian (60 mil.), Spanish and Polish (40 mil. each), Ukrainian (30 mil.)

As far as the foreign language studies are concerned, English is currently the most popular foreign language in Europe, followed by German, French, Russian, Spanish, and Italian.

Multilingualism today

With immigrants and refugees, Europe has become more multilingual.

The typical multilingual European is a student who holds a managerial position or was born in a country where a different language is spoken.

The European Union adheres to a policy of multilingualism, both at its institutional workings and as an aim for its citizens.

Multilingualism for the EU is linked to worker mobility and the European economy.

The European Union spends more than €30 million a year promoting language learning and linguistic diversity through the Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci programmes.