List of countries by English-speaking population

The following is a list of English-speaking population by country, including information on both native speakers and second-language speakers.

List

Country % English speakers Eligible population Total English speakers As first language As an additional language[1] Comments
 United States 94.2316,823,000298,444,149255,505,95342,938,196Figures are from the year 2007 American Community Survey by the U.S. Census Bureau. English speaker figures are for persons age 5 and older. Total population age 5 and older was 280,950,438 of which 267,444,149 stated that they spoke English "very well" or "well". Second language speakers are respondents age 5 and older who reported they do not speak English at home but know it "very well" or "well".[2]
 India 10.351,210,000,000125,226,449226,449 125,000,000 2001 figures for native language (first language).[3][4][5] The additional language figure includes English speakers, but not English users.[6][7] Data from the 2005 India Human Development Survey shows that surveyed households reported that among men 72 per cent do not speak English, 28 per cent speak at least some English, and 5 percent are fluent. Among women, the corresponding proportions were 83 per cent, 17 per cent, and 3 per cent.[8]
 Pakistan 49188,400,10092,316,049 92,316,049Official and educational language of Pakistan is English. Estimate by Euromonitor International (2009), based on trade interviews, data from the Statistics Division of the Government of Pakistan and other government bodies.[9]
 Nigeria 53156,493,00082,941,00082,941,000 Euromonitor International report (2009)
 United Kingdom 97.7464,000,00063,962,00058,972,0005,128,000Source: Data from the 2011 census for England and Wales. [10] Additional English speaker figures are for usual residents aged 3 years and over with a main language other than English who can speak English "very well" or "well".
 Philippines 56.63100,437,85257,292,88436,93552,255,949Total population: Census 2010. Proportion of total speakers: Census 2000, text above Figure 7. 63.71% of the then 66.7 million people aged 5 years or more could speak English.[11] Proportion of native speakers: Census 1995, as quoted by Andrew Gonzalez in "The Language Planning Situation in the Philippines", Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 19 (5&6), 487–525, p. 492: .04% of the then 68.4 million people were native speakers of English. (1998).[12]
 Germany 6480,600,00051,584,000272,50448,000,000Native speakers: Statistisches Bundesamt (cited here).
Non-native speakers: Eurobarometer report 2006
Does not include foreign military personnel based in Germany.
 Bangladesh 18163,323,10029,398,158 29,398,158Source: Euromonitor International report 2009
 Egypt 3583,289,50028,101,32528,101,325Source: Euromonitor International Report 2011 [13]
 Canada 85.6333,121,17528,360,24019,424,0908,936,150Source: 2011 Census, Population by knowledge of official languages and Population by mother tongue. The 2011 count reported that 22,564,665 people were able to conduct a conversation in English but not French, while 5,795,575 were able to converse in both English and French. The census also asked for the first language learned at home in childhood and still understood by the individual: 18,858,980 reported English as their sole mother tongue, 144,685 reported both English and French as mother tongues, 396,330 reported English and a non-official language as mother tongues, and 24,095 reported English, French and a non-official language as mother tongues.
 France 3965,350,00025,500,000 25,500,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Italy 3459,619,29020,300,000 20,300,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Australia 97.0321,394,30917,357,83315,013,9652,343,868Source: 2001 Census. The 2001 census data is subject to multiple interpretations. The data noted that 18,972,350 persons out of 21,394,309 total were speakers of a language, and excluded young children. However, more than a million of those 18,972,350 persons provided no information; 879,778 did not give information on proficiency, and 203,101 were "overseas visitors" who were not asked. Of the 17,889,671 persons for whom an inquiry was made 17,357,833 spoke English only, or "well" or "very well" as a second language; while 531,838 spoke "not well" or "not at all".
 Thailand 27.1663,038,24717,121,187 17,121,187Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Netherlands 9016,770,00015,030,000 15,030,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
   Nepal 46.4929,890,68613,896,72020,000876,720 Source: Census. (date not verified)
 South Africa 3152,981,99116,424,4174,930,51011,493,907Native speakers from 2011 Census: Census in Brief, page 23.
Non-native speakers: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Poland 3338,501,00012,700,000 12,700,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Turkey 1770,586,256 12,000,000 12,000,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2006
 Iraq 3531,700,00011,095,000 11,000,000Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
 Spain 2247,190,00010,400,000 10,400,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 China 0.731,200,000,00010,000,00010,000,000Figures are for English users in mainland China only (i.e. excluding Hong Kong where English is an official language and Macau). The oft-cited figure of 300 million is for "learners."[14]
 Brazil 7.9201,032,70015,881,583 15,881,583Source: Target Group Index - IBGE
 Sweden 869,517,0008,200,000 8,200,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Kenya 18.8343,013,4318,100,000 7,900,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Cameroon 3819,740,0007,500,000 7,500,000Euromonitor International Report (2009)
 Malaysia 20.5427,170,0005,580,000380,0005,200,000Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Russia 5.48138,312,5357,574,3032,5227,571,787Source: Composition by Nationality and Language Ability, Citizenship, Tables 4.5 and 4.1, Russian Census (2010). The "total" figure is the number of residents who reported English as one of the languages they knew. The "first language" figure is the number of residents who reported "American" or "English" as their nationality. The "additional languages" figure is the difference. More than 9 million schoolgoers studied English as a foreign language in 2008-2009.
 Belgium 5910,584,5346,250,000 6,250,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2006 (the 2012 report seems to have a critical typo)
 Israel 84.977,303,0006,205,000100,0006,105,000Source: Ethnologue (2005)[15]
English is widely spoken, both by the Jewish majority and by minority ethnic groups.[16][17]
 Austria 738,415,0006,150,000 6,150,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Romania 3119,043,7675,900,000 5,900,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Zimbabwe 41.5813,349,0005,550,000250,0005,300,000Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Greece 5110,787,6905,500,000 5,500,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Sierra Leone 83.535,866,0004,900,000500,000 4,400,000 Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Mexico 12.9120,664,00015,686,262 15,686,264 Consulta Mitofsky-Tracking Poll Roy Campos: Las Lenguas Extranjeras en México, January 2013 ; and II Conteo de Población y Vivienda, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografía e Informática (INEGI) .
 Denmark 865,543,0004,770,000 4,770,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
  Switzerland 61.287,637,3004,680,00073,4004,606,600Figure for speakers of English as "main language", according to Federal Statistical Office, Neuchâtel 2008[18] Source for number of non-native English speakers is 1999 publication by Prof. François Grin cited here: http://switzerland.isyours.com/e/countries/uk/language.html
 Morocco 1432,770,9004,587,926 4,587,926Source: Euromonitor International report 2011
 Norway 905,136,7004,500,000 4,500,000Source: http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2014/03/norwegian-english-fusion-language/
 Republic of Ireland 98.374,422,1004,350,0004,122,100237,900Source: Eurobarometer report 2006; Central Statistics Office ; Travbla
 Singapore 805,076,7004,822,8651,097,443253,835Source: 2010 Census. Second language speaker figure only includes those literate in English aged 15 or more and does not include third language proficiency. Singapore Census of Population, 2010, Advance Data Release No.1, "Demographic Characteristics, Education, Language and Religion"; Census of Population 2010, Table 47 "Resident Population Aged 5 Years and Over by Age Group and Language Most Frequently Spoken at Home"
 Ghana 66.6727,000,00018,000,00018,000,000Source: 2010 Ghanaian Census[19]
 Tanzania 9.8940,454,0004,000,0004,000,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 New Zealand 97.824,275,1003,673,6233,673,623 There were 4,027,947 responses to 2006 Census: Language spoken. 3,673,679 gave English as a response, 81,936 had no English but another language. The balance of 272,382 were; no language (too young) 75,195, no response 196,221, response unidentifiable 588, response outside scope 378. Hence it is most meaningful to express the English speaking per cent without including the figures for these 272,382. This gives 97.8% English-speaking, 2.2% non-English-speaking (3,673,679 and 81,936 divided by 3,755,565)
Crystal (2003), p. 109, gives figures of 3,700,000 native speakers and 150,000 second language speakers.
 Finland 705,410,0003,800,000 3,800,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Portugal 2710,623,0002,900,000 2,900,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Papua New Guinea 49.766,331,0003,150,000150,0003,000,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Liberia 82.673,750,0003,100,000600,0002,500,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Jordan 456,598,0002,969,370 2,969,370Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
 Jamaica 97.642,714,0002,650,0002,600,00050,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Algeria 735,954,0002,516,780 2,516,780Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
 Uganda 8.0930,884,0002,500,0002,500,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Hong Kong 46.076,808,4333,136,784238,2882,898,496According to 2011 population census, Hong Kong has approximately 3.1 million speakers, of whom 238,288 regard English as their "usual" language.[20]
 Czech Republic 2710,562,2142,850,000 2,850,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Argentina 6.5242,192,5002,752,681Source:.[21] Percentage of people who state to have a high level of English. Another 19.49% and 16.23% of people said they had an intermediate and low level, respectively, of English.
 Yemen 924,800,0002,232,000 2,232,000Source: Euromonitor International report 2011
 Croatia 494,555,0002,200,000 2,200,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2006
 Colombia 4.22 47,661,3682,012,95075,600 1,937,350 Total was estimated by multiplying projected population for 2014 (DANE) by percentage of Colombian population that speaks English 4.09%[22] then 63,600 was added to that figure which is the total of American and British residents. Figures for native speakers are as follows: 60,000 U.S. citizens that reside in Colombia[23] 12,000 are Colombian Raizal from San Andrés and Isla de Providencia where they speak San Andrés–Providencia Creole[24] 3,600 British expatriates[25]
 Hungary 209,982,0002,000,000 2,000,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Puerto Rico 48.613,991,0001,940,000100,0001,840,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Sri Lanka 9.919,299,0001,910,00010,0001,900,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Zambia 16.0211,922,0001,910,000110,0001,800,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Bulgaria 257,640,2381,900,000 2,605 1,902,605Source: Eurobarometer report 2012 and 2011 Census[26]
 Kazakhstan 15.412,156,7051,874,5836021,873,981Number of those who understand spoken English, from these 1.9 million: 311,435 (2.6%/16.6%) can only read, 931,444 (7.7%/49.6%) can read and write in English. The number of native speakers is the sum of Americans and Englishmen "by nationality". (Census 2009)
 Lebanon 404,265,6001,706,0001,706,000Source: Euromonitor International report (2011)
 Chile 9.5316,634,6031,585,027 Source: 2012 Census.[27]
 Rwanda 1510,137,4001,520,6101,520,610Source: Euromonitor International report 2009
 Slovakia 265,397,0361,400,000 1,400,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Trinidad and Tobago 87.741,305,0001,145,0001,145,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Slovenia 592,050,0001,210,000 1,210,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Lithuania 383,053,8001,160,000 1,160,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Latvia 462,070,371950,000 950,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Guyana 90.55751,000680,000650,00030,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Botswana 38.421,639,833630,000 630,000 Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Estonia 501,294,236650,000 650,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Cyprus 73839,000610,000 610,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Malawi 3.8813,931,831 540,209209 540,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109 and Kayambizinthu.[28]
 Lesotho 27.861,795,000500,000 500,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Suriname 87.09470,784410,000260,000150,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Malta 89453,000400,000unknown352,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Namibia 17.241,820,916314,00014,000300,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Luxembourg 56509,000290,000 290,000Source: Eurobarometer report 2012
 Bahamas 87.13330,549288,000260,00028,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Barbados 98.57279,000275,000262,00013,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Belize 81.65301,270246,000190,00056,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Madagascar 1823,042,3004,147,614 4,147,614The main languages are French and Malagasy.
 Mauritius 15.971,264,866202,0002,000200,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Vanuatu 83.55215,446180,00060,000120,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Fiji 20.62853,445176,0006,000170,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Solomon Islands 31.68552,438175,00010,000 165,000 Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Guam 91.09173,456158,00058,000100,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Brunei 39.07381,371144,00010,000134,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 95120,000114,000114,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 U.S. Virgin Islands 95.97108,448113,00098,00015,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Grenada 90.91110,000100,000100,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Samoa 49.86188,54094,0001,00093,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Isle of Man 99.9380,05880,000 80,000
 Bhutan 11.4658,00075,000 75,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Saint Lucia 43.03165,00071,00031,00040,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Northern Mariana Islands 83.3384,00070,0005,000 65,000 Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Antigua and Barbuda 8085,00068,00066,0002,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 American Samoa 10067,00067,0002,00065,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Federated States of Micronesia 57.66111,00064,0004,00060,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Bermuda 96.9265,00063,00063,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Dominica 94.0367,00063,0003,00060,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Marshall Islands 59,00060,000 60,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Swaziland 4.381,141,00050,000 50,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Aruba 42.31104,00044,0009,00035,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 The Gambia 2.341,709,00040,00040,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 7850,00039,00039,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Cayman Islands 76.647,00036,00036,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Seychelles 37.9387,00033,0003,00030,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Gibraltar 28,87530,00028,0002,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Tonga 30100,00030,000 30,000 Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Kiribati 24.2195,00023,00023,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 British Virgin Islands 86.9623,00020,00020,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
 Palau 92.520,00018,50050018,000 Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Andorra 2281,22217,86917,869Source Census: Linguistic knowledge 2004.
 Anguilla 92.3113,00012,00012,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Nauru 10,00010,3008009,500Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Cook Islands 19.820,2004,0001,0003,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109.
 Montserrat 67.85,9004,0004,000Source: Crystal (2003), p. 109. Note this includes speakers of an English creole.
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

See also

Non-English:

Notes

  1. ↑ Statistics on second language speakers are inevitably not precise; partly because there is no widely agreed definition of second language speakers – there is no differentiation between countries where English is the lingua franca and those where it is not.
  2. ↑ "Language Use in the United States: 2007" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  3. ↑ Census of India's Indian Census, Issue 25, 2003, pp 8–10, (Feature: Languages of West Bengal in Census and Surveys, Bilingualism and Trilingualism).
  4. ↑ FAMILY-WISE GROUPING OF THE 122 SCHEDULED AND NON-SCHEDULED LANGUAGES – 2001 Census of India
  5. ↑ Tropf, Herbert S. 2004. India and its Languages. Siemens AG, Munich
  6. ↑ For a credible source pertaining to this data, please see: The Times of India], . Their article explains the difference between the 350 million number mentioned in a previous version of this Wikipedia article and the current number:
    “ "Wikipedia's India estimate of 350 million includes two categories – "English Speakers" and "English Users". The distinction between the Speakers and Users is that Users only know how to read English words while Speakers know how to read English, understand spoken English as well as form their own sentences to converse in English. The distinction becomes clear when you consider the China numbers. China has over 200 million users that can read English words but, as anyone can see on the streets of China, only handful of million who are English speakers." ”
  7. ↑ An analysis of the 2001 Census of India, published in 2010, concluded that approximately 86 million Indians reported English as their second language, and another 39 million reported it as their third language. No data was available whether these individuals were English speakers or users.
  8. ↑ "HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA" (PDF). OUP. 2005.
  9. ↑ The Benefits of the English Language for Individuals and Societies: Quantitative Indicators from Cameroon, Nigeria, Rwanda, Bangladesh and Pakistan
  10. ↑ "2011 Census: Quick Statistics for England and Wales, March 2011". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 30 January 2013.
  11. ↑ Before mistakenly correcting the percentage again, please note that there are fewer people aged 5 years or more in any country than there are people in that country, because some people are toddlers or infants. In other words, no, the numbers will not automatically add up. 63.71% is what the cited source, text above Figure 7, a report from the 2000 census, really says. This multiplied by the 2010 census's total population over 5 produces the number in the chart. The 2010 number comes from Philippines in Figures, 2013, Chapter 5, Demography, table 5.1 or 5.6
  12. ↑ From mid-2009 to late 2013 this entry overstated the number of native speakers by roughly 100fold, and inflated the number of total speakers, on the alleged basis of material in "Philippines". Ethnologue. 1999-02-19. Retrieved 2013-10-16.. In fact, Ethnologue as of 24th December 2013 simply repeats the number of native speakers, 20,000, reported in Crystal 2003, on the basis of an old (pre-1995) census, and does not address total speakers at all. This attempt to correct these errors in turn perpetrates both error and original research, by applying the old percentages listed above, 63.71% of people over 5 as total speakers in 2000, and .04% of people as native speakers in 1995, to the 2010 totals from Philippines in Figures, 2013, Chapter 5, Demography, tables 5.1 and 5.6. Andrew Gonzalez passed away in 2006; someone else's attention to the 2010 census figures, which appear not to be online and may not have been printed yet in adequate detail, is needed to produce reliable, more or less current, numbers.
  13. ↑ The Benefits of the English Language for Individuals and Societies: Quantitative Indicators from Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia and Yemen
  14. ↑ Jian Yang (April 2006). "Learners and users of English in China". English Today 22 (2): 3–10. doi:10.1017/S0266078406002021.. Quote: "What this suggests, it seems, is that Yan’s (2004) ten million may after all be a more informed estimate of the actual regular users of English in China." (page 9)"
  15. ↑ Languages of Israel, Ethnologue.com
  16. ↑ Multilingualism in Israel, Bar-Ilan University – Faculty of Humanities : Language Policy Research Center.
  17. ↑ http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED136607&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED136607 English Language Teaching Profile: Israel], Education Resources Information Center.
  18. ↑ Resident population according to main language, Federal Statistical Office, Neuchâtel 2008
  19. ↑ http://www.statsghana.gov.gh/docfiles/2010phc/Census2010_Summary_report_of_final_results.pdf
  20. ↑ HONG KONG GOVERNMENT'S CENSUS AND STATISTICS DEPARTMENT
  21. ↑ "Sociedad :: Los idiomas de los argentinos" (in Spanish). Página/12. Retrieved 2013-10-16.
  22. ↑ http://www.colombiestad.gov.co/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=353&Itemid=90
  23. ↑ http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/country/colombia.html
  24. ↑ http://www.ethnologue.com/language/icr
  25. ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/in_depth/brits_abroad/html/s_america.stm
  26. ↑ "2011 census of Bulgaria" (PDF) (in Bulgarian). National Statistical Institute of Bulgaria. p. 22. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
  27. ↑ "Síntesis de resultados Censo 2012" (PDF) (in Spanish). Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  28. ↑ Edrinnie Kayambizinthu (1998). "The Language Planning Situation in Malawi" (PDF). Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 19 (5&6): 369. doi:10.1080/01434639808666363.
  29. ↑ "European and their languages 2012" (PDF). Eurobarometer. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
  30. ↑ "Population at 1 January". Eurostat. Retrieved 2 January 2013.

References