The world is home to 195 countries, 193 of these nations are UN members. The Holy See and the State of Palestine are the two non-member observer states that make the total to 195. Countries and languages are two entities which are extremely important. Besides a flag or the currency of a country, what makes a country stand out is its National Language. It is part of the heritage of a nation.
Reasons Why the Official Language is Important
Language nurtures one’s sense of empathy and understanding towards others at a crucial time. The official language also opens new pathways and avenues to professional success in a globalised workplace. The following are the main reasons why the national language is essential-
⦁ Exposure to Languages Improves Empathy
When a child learns a new language, he is automatically introduced to all the values and customs, and this encourages them to think critically, and it also improves cultural sensitivity.
⦁ Multilingualism Can Be Linked to Higher Income
Many studies have proved a considerable correlation between one’s earning potential and multilingualism. There is a massive pool of accessible jobs as there are opportunities for finding top positions in other countries.
⦁ Learning Languages Expands One’s Worldview
Each country’s language has its own style, heritage and cultural reference. A child is exposed to these features, the new vocabulary and the idea the language represents.
Countries and Languages
Almost, 7151 languages are spoken in the world. However, there is a major difference between an official language and a language. An official language is one which is not just used by the people while speaking with one another, but it is also used for official purposes in schools, national media and courts. A country like Japan has only one official language. Zimbabwe has 16 national languages.
Why is Official Language Necessary?
Official language is important for national unity and 178 countries have an official language. Out of these, 101 recognize more than one official language. It is necessary for the constitution and some countries in this world use it for empowering indigenous peoples.
English is the most common official language in 67 countries. French is second with 29 countries and Arabic holds the third rank with 26 countries. Spanish is the language which holds fourth rank with 21 countries.
Following are some of the National Languages of the Countries
| Country | Language |
| Afghanistan | Pashtu, Farsi, Dari, Hazaragi, other Turkic and minor languages |
| Albania | Albanian (Tosk is the official dialect), Greek |
| Algeria | Arabic, French, Berber dialects |
| Andorra | Catalán, French, Castilian, Portuguese |
| Angola | Portuguese, Bantu and other African languages |
| Antigua and Barbuda | English, local dialects |
| Argentina | Spanish, English, Italian, German, French |
| Armenia | Armenian, Russian |
| Australia | English, Indigenous languages |
| Austria | German, Slovene, Croatian, Hungarian |
| Azerbaijan | Azerbaijani Turkic, Russian, Armenian, other |
| Bahamas | English, Creole |
| Bahrain | Arabic, English, Farsi, Urdu |
| Bangladesh | Bangla, English |
| Barbados | English |
| Belarus | Belorussian (White Russian), Russian, other |
| Belize | English, Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole |
| Benin | French, Fon, Yoruba, tribal languages |
| Bhutan | Dzongkha, Tibetan and Nepalese dialects |
| Bolivia | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian (all formerly known as Serbo- Croatian); written languages use Latin and Cyrillic script |
| Botswana | English, Setswana |
| Brazil | Portuguese, Spanish, English, French |
| Brunei Darussalam | Malay, English, Chinese |
| Bulgaria | Bulgarian; secondary ethnic languages |
| Burkina Faso | French, Indigenous African (Sudanic) languages |
| Burundi | Kirundi, French, Swahili |
| Cambodia | Khmer, French, English |
| Cameroon | French, English; 24 major African language groups |
| Canada | English, French; Indigenous languages |
| Cape Verde | Portuguese, Criuolo |
| Central African Republic | French, Sangho, Arabic, Hansa, Swahili |
| Chad | French, Arabic, Sara, more than 120 languages and dialects |
| Chile | Spanish |
| Country | Language |
| China (PRC) | Cantonese, Mandarin, also local dialects (Daur, Kalmyk- Oirat, Lu, Peripheral Mongolian, Central Tibetan, Uyghur, Xibe, Zhuang) |
| Colombia | Spanish |
| Comoros | Arabic and French, Shikomoro (Swahili/Arabic blend) |
| Congo, Republic of | French, Lingala, Monokutuba, Kikongo, many local languages and dialects |
| Congo (DRC) | French, Lingala, Kingwana, Kikongo, Tshiluba |
| Costa Rica | Spanish, English |
| Côte d’Ivoire | French, African languages (Diaula esp.) |
| Croatia | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian (all formerly known as Serbo- Croatian), Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, German, and other languages |
| Cuba | Spanish |
| Cyprus | Greek, Turkish, English |
| Czech Republic | Czech |
| Denmark | Danish, Faeroese, Greenlandic (Inuit dialect), German, English |
| Djibouti | French, Arabic, Somali, Afar Dominica: English, French patois |
| Dominican Republic | Spanish |
| East Timor | Tetum, Portuguese, Bahasa Indonesian, English, other Indigenous languages, including Tetum, Galole, Mambae, and Kemak |
| Ecuador | Spanish, Quechua, other Amerindian languages |
| Egypt | Arabic, English, French |
| El Salvador | Spanish, Nahua (among some Amerindians) |
| Equatorial Guinea | Spanish, French, pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
| Eritrea | Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages |
| Estonia | Estonian, Russian, Ukrainian, Finnish, other |
| Ethiopia | Amharic, Tigrigna, Orominga, Guaragigna, Somali, Arabic, English, 70 others |
| Fiji | English, Fijian, Hindustani |
| Finland | Finnish, Swedish, small Sami (Lapp), Russian |
| France | French regional dialects (Provençal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish) |
| Gabon | French, Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi Gambia, The: English, Mandinka, Wolof, Fula, Serer-Sine, Sarahole, Pulaar, Maninkakan, Mandjaque, Mandingo, Jola-Fonyi, Creole |
| Georgia | Georgian, Russian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Abkhaz |
| Germany | German |
| Ghana | English, Indigenous languages (Brong Ahafo, Twi, Fanti, Ga, Ewe, Dagbani) |
| Greece | Greek, English, French |
| Grenada | English, French patois |
| Guatemala | Spanish, Amerindian languages (23 officially recognised Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca) |
| Guinea | French, Indigenous languages (Malinké, Susu, Fulani) |
| Guinea-Bissau | Portuguese, Criolo, African languages |
| Country | Language |
| Guyana | English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu |
| Haiti | Creole, French |
| Honduras | Honduras: Spanish, Amerindian dialects, English |
| Hong Kong Special Administration Region (SAR) | Cantonese, Mandarin |
| Hungary | Magyar (Hungarian), other |
| Iceland | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German |
| India | Hindi, English, Bengali, Gujarati, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Kannada, Assamese, Sanskrit, Sindhi, and 1600+ dialects |
| Indonesia | Bahasa Indonesia, English, Dutch, Javanese, and 580+ languages/dialects |
| Iran | Farsi (Persian), Azari, Kurdish, Arabic |
| Iraq | Arabic, Kurdish, Assyrian Neo Aramaic |
| Ireland | English, Irish Gaelic |
| Israel | Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian |
| Italy | Italian, German, French, Slovene |
| Iran | Farsi (Persian), Azari, Kurdish, Arabic |
| Iraq | Arabic, Kurdish, Assyrian Neo Aramaic |
| Ireland | English, Irish Gaelic |
| Israel | Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian |
| Italy | Italian, German, French, Slovene |
| Iran | Farsi (Persian), Azari, Kurdish, Arabic |
| Jamaica | English, Jamaican Creole |
| Japan | Japanese |
| Jordan | Arabic, English |
| Kazakhstan | Kazak (Qazaq), Russian |
| Kenya | English, Swahili, 25 ethnic group languages |
| Kiribati | English, I-Kiribati (Gilbertese) |
| Korea, North | Korean, South: Korean Kuwait: Arabic, English |
| Kyrgyzstan | Kyrgyz, Russian |
| Laos | Lao, French, English |
| Latvia | Latvian, Russian |
| Lebanon | Arabic, French, English |
| Lesotho | English, Sesotho, Zulu, Xhosa |
| Liberia | English, tribal dialects |
| Libya | Arabic, Italian, English |
| Liechtenstein | German, Alemmanic dialect Lithuania: Lithuanian, Polish, Russian |
| Luxembourg | Luxermbourgish, French, German |
| Macedonia, former Yugoslav Republic of | Macedonian (uses the Cyrillic alphabet), Albanian, Turkish, other |
| Madagascar | Malagasy, French |
| Malawi | English, Chichewa |
| Country | Language |
| Malaysia | Malay, Chinese, Tamil, English |
| Maldives | Dhivehi, Arabic, Hindi, English |
| Mali | French, African languages |
| Malta | Maltese, English |
| Marshall Islands | Marshallese, English |
| Mauritania | Arabic, Wolof, French |
| Mauritius | English, French, Creole, Hindi, Urdu, Hakka, Bojpoori |
| Mexico: Spanish, Indian languages | Spanish, Indian languages |
| Liberia: English, tribal dialects | English, tribal dialects |
| Libya: Arabic, Italian, English | Arabic, Italian, English |
| Liechtenstein | German, Alemmanic dialect Lithuania: Lithuanian, Polish, Russian |
| Micronesia | English, Chukese, Pohnpeian, Yapase, Kosrean |
| Moldova | Moldovan (similar to Romanian), Russian, Gagauz (Turkish dialect) |
| Monaco | French, English, Italian, Monégasque |
| Mongolia | Mongolian, Turkic, Russian, Chinese |
| Morocco | Arabic, French, Berber dialects, Spanish |
| Mozambique | Portuguese, Bantu languages |
| Myanmar | The Myanmar language (formerly Burmese), Karen, Chin, Rohingya |
| Namibia | Afrikaans, German, English, several Indigenous languages |
| Nauru | Nauruan, English |
| Mongolia | Mongolian, Turkic, Russian, Chinese |
| Morocco | Arabic, French, Berber dialects, Spanish |
| Nepal: | Nepali, Newar, Maithali, Bhojpuri, Tharu, Tamang, and others |
| The Netherlands | Dutch, Frisian |
| New Zealand | English, Maori Nicaragua: Spanish |
| Niger | French, Hausa; Songhai; Arabic |
| Nigeria | English, Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, 200+ others |
| Norway | Bokmål, Nynorsk (forms of Norwegian) |
| Oman | Arabic, English, Indian languages |
| Pakistan | Punjabi, Sindhi, Siraiki (Punjabi variant), Pashtu, Urdu, Balochi, Hindko, Brahui, English, Burushaski, and others |
| Palau | Palau |
| Palestinian territories | Arabic, Hebrew, English, French |
| Spanish, English | Spanish, English |
| Papua New Guinea: | English, Tok Pisin (Melanesian Creole English), Hiri Motu, and 717 distinct Indigenous languages |
| Nepal | Nepali, Newar, Maithali, Bhojpuri, Tharu, Tamang, and others |
| The Netherlands | Dutch, Frisian |
| New Zealand | English, Maori Nicaragua: Spanish |
| Niger | French, Hausa; Songhai; Arabic |
| Country | Language |
| Nigeria | English, Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, 200+ others |
| Paraguay | Spanish, Guaraní |
| Peru | Spanish, Quéchua, Aymara, and other Indigenous languages |
| The Philippines | Filipino (based on Tagalog), English, regional languages: Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, others |
| Poland | Polish |
| Portugal | Portuguese |
| Qatar | Arabic, English |
| Romania | Romanian, Hungarian, German |
| Russia | Russian, others |
| Rwanda | Kinyarwanda, French, English |
| Paraguay | Spanish, Guaraní |
| Peru | Spanish, Quéchua, Aymara, and other Indigenous languages |
| The Philippines | Filipino (based on Tagalog), English, regional languages: Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, others |
| Poland | Polish |
| St. Kitts and Nevis | English |
| St. Lucia | English, Patois |
| St. Vincent/the Grenadines: | English, French patois |
| Samoa | Samoan, English |
| San Marino | Italian |
| São Tomé and Príncipe: | Portuguese |
| Saudi Arabia | Arabic, English widely spoken |
| Senegal | French, Wolof, Serer, other ethnic dialects |
| Serbia and Montenegro | Serbian, Albanian (once known as Serbo-Croatian); written language uses Latin and Cyrillic script |
| Seychelles | English, French, Seselwa (a creole) |
| Sierra Leone | English, Mende, Temne, Krio |
| Singapore | Malay, Chinese (Mandarin), Tamil, English |
| Slovakia | Slovak, Hungarian |
| Slovenia | Slovenian; Serbo-Croatian |
| Solomon Islands | English, Solomon Pijin (an English pidgin), 60 Indigenous Melanesian languages |
| Somalia | Somali, Arabic, English, Italian |
| South Africa | Xhosa, Zulu, English, Afrikaans, Ndebele, Sesotho sa Leboa, Sesotho, Swati, Xitsonga, Setswana, Tshivenda |
| South Sudan | English, Arabic, Dinka, Nuer, Zande |
| Spain | Castilian Spanish, Catalan, Galician, Basque Sri Lanka: Sinhala, Tamil, English |
| Sudan | Arabic, English, Dinka, tribal dialects |
| Suriname | Dutch, Surinamese (lingua franca), English widely spoken |
| Swaziland | English, Swazi |
| Sweden | Swedish |
| Switzerland | German, French, Italian, Romansch |
| Country | Language |
| Syria | Arabic, Kurdish, French and English widely understood |
| Taiwan | Chinese (Mandarin) |
| Tajikistan | Tajik, Russian, Uzbek |
| Tanzania | Swahili, English, local languages |
| Thailand | Thai (Siamese), Chinese, English |
| Togo | French, Ewé, Mina (south), Kabyé, Cotocoli (north), and many dialects |
| Tonga | Tongan (an Austronesian language), English |
| Trinidad and Tobago | English, Hindi, French, Spanish |
| Tunisia | Arabic, French |
| Turkey: Turkish, Kurdish | Turkish, Kurdish |
| Turkmenistan | Turkmen, Russian, Uzbek |
| Tuvalu | Tuvaluan, English |
| Uganda | English, Swahili, Luganda, Ateso, Luo |
| Ukraine | Ukrainian |
| United Arab Emirates | Arabic, English as a second language |
| United Kingdom | English, Welsh, Scots Gaelic |
| United States | English, sizable Spanish-speaking minority |
| Uruguay | Spanish |
| Uzbekistan | Uzbek, Russian, Tajik, other |
| Vanuatu | Bislama (a Melanesian pidgin English), English, French |
| Vatican City | Latin, Italian, and various other languages |
| Venezuela | Spanish, various Indigenous languages in the remote interior |
| Vietnam | Vietnamese, French, English, Khmer, Chinese |
| Western Sahara region | Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic |
| Yemen | Arabic |
| Zambia | English, local dialects |
Every country has an official language and it helps unify the citizens of the country and this makes it easier for the government to communicate with its citizens.