Language News & Articles

THE WORLD LEARNS SPANISH

A study by the Instituto Cervantes highlights the popularity of Spanish throughout the world. Findings point to more than 14 million students of Spanish throughout the world, a figure which is expected to grow substantially.

Data from a 900-page study performed by the Instituto Cervantes, Spain's government-sponsored Spanish language institution, suggests that there could  be as many as 14 million people throughout the world that study Spanish as a supplemental language. This figure makes Spanish the second most-studied language in the world behind English. In countries as varied as Australia, New Zealand, Cameroon, Senegal and Ivory Coast, Spanish is either the language with the best future or studied as a second choice.  

The study, published on the 15th anniversary of the Insituto Cervantes, gathers 220 authors that analyze the international presence of Spanish. Jorge Urrutia, the Instituto's academic director, emphasizes the amount of work that went into the study: "To put these figures together we've gathered information from varied sources: our own scholars, university-level Spanish professors, embassies … 14 million Spanish students are a very elevated figure."

The largest source of demand comes from the America's, with 7 million Spanish students. This figure will change dramatically once the group of 1 million students in Brazil rises to at least 11 million. This will happen once a law that makes Spanish mandatory in middle schools comes into effect. Brazil's Ministry of Education estimates that 210,000 new Spanish teachers will be needed in the next couple of years. In the United States there are more than 6 million students, a number that's expected to grow by 60%. Interestingly, in Canada the number of Spanish students doesn’t rise above 93,000.

In Europe, 3.5 million students study Spanish in 38 countries. France has more than 2 million students; Spanish here has taken hold as the foreign language of most importance just after English. In Germany (with nearly 500,000) the demand is for Spanish courses specialized in business, economy and tourism. Italy, with more than 300,000, has seen a 52% growth in University-level Spanish students.

More than half a million people study Spanish in 15 African countries, Burkina Faso and Tanzania among them. Senegal and Ivory Coast account for more than 66% of the demand in Spanish courses in the entire African continent. In Morocco, with 60,000 students, access to new employment opportunities is the guiding force behind the demand for Spanish.

The demand in Asia is a bit weaker; 60,000 University students in Japan, 20,000 in the Philippines, 15,000 in South Korea and 9,000 in China are among the less than 160,000 people that study Spanish in this continent. 

These numbers point to the growing importance of Spanish in both business and cultural contexts. The globalizing economy, along with half a billion native Spanish speakers worldwide, makes this language not only a valuable asset, but a necessary tool in some markets. Though 14 million students is an impressive figure, the popularity of Spanish as a second language is sure to grow dramatically in coming years. 

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO SURVIVE YOUR FIRST TWO WEEKS IN SPAIN

Two weeks is more or less the time it should take you to get your first feelings of stability after having come from a foreign country to study Spanish in Spain. Depending on where you're coming from and your own personality, it will be more or less hard to assimilate the changes in cultural perspective and way of life that you'll encounter in Spain.

Having a very basic vocabulary, just enough for getting around in the streets and being able to perform everyday tasks, is definitely a must. Some of the environments that you'll likely have to navigate are the supermarket, the bus / metro / train system, and the bustling city center.

Chances are you'll be able to find plenty of information regarding transportation in your city online in the form of maps, schedules and other useful information. There are also physical offices that distribute information and offer services to the consumer for each city transport system. As a student, you'll probably be able to obtain a pass that will allow you to get around the city at a reduced rate.

Speaking of money, it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the Euro as early as possible if this currency isn't used in your home country. The unfortunate truth is that business owners often take advantage of unaware tourists by selling goods at higher prices or even shorting foreign customers on change. This tends to happen more in areas where tourism is common.

The best way to avoid this is to be aware of the value of the Euro and the cost of living in order to know more or less how expensive things should be. It also helps to display a sense of confidence - the distracted tourist to someone with an eye out for some easy money is like blood to a shark. 

Another quick word of advice: be very wary when approached by unofficial-looking tour guides that offer to take you through the most authentic parts of the city. These trips often take visitors a little too deep into the 'real' Spain than they wanted to go, with an empty wallet in a dark alley.

One thing you should keep in mind during your first days in Spain is that bank and store hours are probably quite different from those in your home country. In some areas of Spain, such as Andalusia, many stores close in the middle of the day (typically from 14:00 to 17:00) for siesta.

Another potential shocker is that most stores close during the entire day on Sundays, but this also depends on what region of Spain you're studying in. Keep this in mind and plan your grocery or shopping trips accordingly... don't commit the common mistake of leaving something important to do for Sunday and then suddenly finding out there's no way to do it.

You should also locate the nearest grocery store early on. Mercadona and Dia, if available in the part of Spain where you'll study, are usually the least expensive supermarkets.

If you're a social person, also ask around or do some research online to find out where the nearest hangout spot from where you live is. Whether you want to spend time with natives in order to practice your Spanish, or prefer finding a place where like-minded travelers and tourists get together, a place where you can make friends and spend time with people in an enjoyable context can be extremely supportive during your initial experience in Spain.

The last thing to locate is a facility where you can use the internet and make cheap calls abroad. These are usually referred to as locutorio’s in Spanish, and are not equivalent to Internet cafe's where you can order some food or coffee and browse the web for free on your portable computer (although these are also available).

Locutorios are strictly devoted to Internet usage and telephone calls, with computer terminals and telephone booths that can be rented on a per-minute basis. Rates will differ depending on location, but are always very affordable (no more than 1 Euro per hour).

This is an easy and cheap way to keep in contact with your friends and family, which you'll really appreciate during the getting-used-to-things, I-really-miss-home stage.