languages in spain

spanish language stats

speakers: 470m

countries: 21

influences on spanish language

two main = latin and arabic

arabic influence in spanish

words: 4000

examples: ojala, ajedrez, azucar

spanish on the internet

8% of internet users communicate in spanish

lots of international influence there tho

international influence on the spanish language

regional differences:

• eg. arquero (latam) vs portero (esp) both mean goalie

spanglish:

• eg. t-shirt vs camiseta or email vs correo electronico

languages in spain

official language: espanol (castellano)

other languages: catalan (cataluna, valencia, baleares), vasco/euskera (pais vasco), gallego (galicia)

catalan = 29% of population
euskera + gallego = 6% each

castellano

10 dialects, inc. el canario, el andaluz (8m speakers of this dialect in andaluca)

languages during the dictatorship

castellano = only official language

jailed if spoke any other language

1978 = all good again

other languages use now in spain

Cataluna, Galicia + Pais Vasco = use regional languages in some schools

why are languages important

3 Cs:

Culture

Commuication

Community

what do we need to preserve languages in spain

willpower (voluntad) of the speakers

government interest

money to keep promoting them