Most Important Languages to Learn Today
It is a running joke that the British can just sit back and rely on their one language to carry them through the world without ever having to bother learning any others. Most countries in Europe make English an obligatory subject in schools from a very young age, meaning that their graduates speak at least two languages to an advanced level. If British workers want to compete, we will have to start learning to speak other languages as well.
Spanish
With around 400 million speakers, Spanish is the fourth most spoken language in the world. It is an official language on four continents and of historical importance elsewhere. English-speaking people often think that they will have a simple advantage to get a job in the United States, but the truth is that in many industries American employers demand a good knowledge of Spanish because of the high levels of Latin American immigration.
Mandarin Chinese
Written Chinese can be extremely difficult to grasp, even for natives, but spoken Mandarin is actually grammatically simple to learn, which is partly why we are seeing record numbers of courses popping up all around Europe.
China’s economy is growing so fast that almost any industry will have a relationship with the country, and being able to speak the language is a huge advantage for anyone looking to enter the world of business. More than 100 schools in the UK are now offering the language, and one has even made it compulsory.
German
More Europeans speak German as their native language than any other language. Germany has the third strongest economy and is the number one export country in the world. With this economic strength come business opportunities, which are increased by having a knowledge of the language – that is why 68% of Japanese students study German.
A productive way to learn this language is to take a German language course in Germany or attend one of the German summer schools in Germany, as it is a lot easier to learn when immersed in the culture and surrounded by native speakers.
French
The International Organisation of Francophonie has 56 member states, of which 28 have French as their official language. It is the only other language, together with English, spoken in all five continents, and it is considered a global language. Learning to speak French will give you an advantage when it comes to applying for jobs in international relations as well as government posts in the UK and the US, given the high level of trade with Canada.
It is also beneficial in private business and technology. France contributes a great deal to the automobile industry, and scientific advances have been made in areas such as the Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, which are documented in French.
Whichever language appeals to you most, why not start learning now and add a valuable new skill to your CV?