How many people speak German?
The German language is spoken by approximately 100 million native speakers, as well as another 20 million second language speakers, making it the 11th most spoken language in the world. It is also the most widely spoken native language in the European Union, where around 16% of the people claim it as their first language.
Where is German spoken?
The majority of these people are found in, you guessed it, Germany! It’s also spoken in Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein. It’s the only official language of Germany, Austria, and Liechtenstein, and it is one of the official languages in the other countries mentioned.
What languages are related to German?
German is a member of the West Germanic branch of the Germanic language family. Other members of this branch are Dutch, Afrikaans, Low German, Frisian, and English.
Is the German language the same everywhere?
Historically there was a West Germanic dialect continuum spanning the Netherlands and the German speaking countries of today, so there is a tremendous amount of dialectal diversity within spoken German today. Some German dialects are not fully mutually intelligible with each other, including the traditionally spoken Low German dialects in northern Germany, Bavarian in southern Germany and Austria, and the Alemannic dialects of Switzerland. But of course Standard German is the formal and written language, and more and more is replacing regional dialects as the main spoken language, especially in Germany.
German on the Langfocus Youtube channel:
