AGUSTÍN YAGÜE, ASESOR TÉCNICO DEL MEC EN WELLINGTON, 2005

The population figures in this tablerefer TO FIRST LANGUAGE SPEAKERS in all countries

RANK LANGUAGE POPULATION1 CHINESE MANDARIN 885,000,0002 SPANISH 332,000,0003 ENGLISH 322,000,0004 BENGALI 189,000,0005 HINDI 182,000,0006 PORTUGUESE 170,000,0007 RUSSIAN 170,000,0008 JAPANESE 125,000,0009 GERMAN 98,000,00010 CHINESE WU 77,175,000

Source: 13th Edition of the Ethnologue (1996)Updated: February 1999

TOP 10 LANGUAGES BY POPULATION

EUROPE: Spain

AMERICAS: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela

ASIA: Philippines

AFRICA: Guinea and Sahara Republic

“Spanish is now spoken by many of the 35.3 million Hispanics in the United States.”

“In the United States, stations in Spanish more than doubled in the last decade, to 533. Broadcast TV

stations jumped 70%, to 53, according to industry estimates.”

About 5.8 percent of the people who use the Internet speak Spanish, making it the No. 4 language in the Internet community, following English (51.3 percent), Japanese (8.1 percent) German (5.9 percent). Close behind is Chinese, with 5.4 percent, followed by French with 3.9 percent

THE BENEFITS OF EARLY LANGUAGE LEARNING

In addition to developing a lifelong ability to communicate with more people, children

may derive other benefits from early language instruction, including improved overall school performance and superior

problem-solving skills

Students of foreign languages score statistically higher on standardized tests

conducted in English.The College Entrance Examination Board

(US) reported that students who averaged 4 or more years of foreign language study scored higher on the verbal section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) than those

who had studied 4 or more years in any other subject area.

In addition, the average mathematics score for individuals who had taken 4 or

more years of foreign language study was identical to the average score of those

who had studied 4 years of mathematics

Students of foreign languages have access to a greater

number of career possibilities and develop a deeper

understanding of their own and other cultures.

Some evidence also suggests that children who receive

second language instruction are more creative and better at

solving complex problems

LEARNING SPANISH:UNITED STATES

In the United States parents are increasingly urging their children to study Spanish. Spanish instruction in elementary schools has increased significantly from 68% of schools in 1987 to 79% in 1997

In the United States Spanish instruction also increased significantly at the

secondary level over the past decade, from 86% to 93% of secondary schools

with foreign language programs.

Spanish is the second language in France. About 65% of French secondary students are learning Spanish. In other words 1,700,000 students are learning Spanish

In the UK, Spanish is the favorite language among adults learning foreign languages

LEARNING SPANISH:EUROPE

Spanish is one of the official languages of the United Nations and of the European Community.

It also ranks second to English as the most widely studied foreign language in Japan, Sweden and the former Soviet Union

Spanish is the language of not only an exciting popular

culture but one of the richest literary and artistic cultures

in the world. Apart from flamenco, salsa or tango and

pop latino singers and film stars, you will familiarize

with the names of writers such as Cervantes, García

Lorca, García Márquez, Borges or Neruda, painters

like Goya, Dalí or Picasso, architects like Gaudí or film makers such Almodóvar or

Amenábar

From California in the United States to Tierra del Fuego, in the Southern tip of South America, from Easter Island in the Pacific to Majorca in the Mediterranean, Spanish is the language for traveling. If you ever dreamt of going to exciting places such as Mexico, the Andes or visiting the two-millennia-old Roman remains in Spain, the Middle Ages castles or exotic palaces like Alhambra in Granada, just to mention a few, you need Spanish

THE KIWI EXPERIENCE

“Not only have I met great people and made friends through the

Spanish connection, but I have had some brilliant work opportunities.Speaking Spanish allowed me to make lifelong friends and to take

part in the life of the place, and I still consider it my second home.

I learned Spanish simply because I loved it and wanted to communicate. At the time, I never thought it would

lead to so many openings and opportunities. Now I think my life

would have been much less exciting without it”

DIANA BURNS, JOURNALIST

“Emerson said: No man should travel until he has learned the

language of the country he visits. Otherwise he voluntarily makes

himself a great baby, -so helpless and so ridiculous.

Spanish has always attracted me as a useful language because of the

number of people who speak it. Further, it did not appear to be too intimidatingly difficult, many words

being familiar from my English”

BENJAMIN WILLIAMS, MATHEMATICIAN, CHRISTCHURCH

“As a 17 year old exchange student in a small rural village in Chile, English was about as

helpful to me as a bicycle is to a fish!

I believe that learning another language (or several!) is

important, not only for the many and varied

opportunities that can result, but also because it enables

people to understand and appreciate one another and the many different realities

that face us all in our respective countries”

NADINE MILLAR CHRISTCHURCH

“Knowing Spanish has had a major impact upon my life, both

professionally and personally”

DR WAYNEMACARTHUR

LECTURER. SCHOOL OF MARKETING AND INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS VICTORIA UNIVERSITY

WELLINGTON

“Learning Spanish not only makes me able to step into another world, it also heightens my anticipation of who will I meet next -more people who are interested in Spanish, the language of colourful cultures”

NINI TILEY-NOTODISURYO, WELLINGTON

Spanish is everywhere! I have found that the most wonderful opportunities to work with Spanish have been right here in New Zealand. Spanish is one of the fastest growing languages taught in New Zealand

MARY BETH TAYLOR, WELLINGTON

A – Argentine asado and April FairB – booming business opportunitiesC – charismatic culturesD – distant diplomatic dutiesE – English teaching overseasF – fiesta fun you will never forgetG – graduation and post-graduate degreesH – history in two hemispheresI – Ibiza imagesJ – justified in many jobsK – key to another worldL – literature; best in its original languageM – magical music to melt your heart

N – nice nights knowing new namesO – oranges and opera singers

P – paseo in the Plaza MayorQ – Quixote, Don, world’s first novel

R – rugby contracts overseas S – summer sangría in Sevilla

T – travel and talk in twenty countriesU – university study and employment

V – velvety vinosW – widely spoken in the world

X – eXciting eXchangesY – Youth Hostels and new friends

Z – Zarzuela in Zaragoza

THE A-Z OF REASONS TO LEARN SPANISH, CRYSTELLE JONES, ROTORUA

“WHY SPANISH?- it is a growth export market for NZ- it is a target market for the government- it will increase your employment opportunities- it will enrich your personal experiences and open doors- it will give you international opportunities irrespective of your profession or educationstart the learning young- it is fun exciting and helps us learn the richness and excitement of this culture”

LOGAN MULLER, LECTURER AT UNITEC, AUCKLAND

“Through studying languages, I have also been able to lecture Spanish at an American university in Singapore and be an international flight attendant for Air New Zealand. Studying Spanish leads to a world of opportunities”

GWENDA PHILLIPS, WELLINGTON

“The students who have learned languages and

travelled overseas from isolated little Gisborne (which many believe to be the centre

of the universe!) have a wonderfully positive attitude

to cultural differences (the colour, dancing, music and of

course the food and drink!) and they all definitely have

the urge to travel more”

KAREN HOLLIS, GISBORNE

ASESORÍA TÉCNICA DEL MEC EN WELLINGTON, 2005