English is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. In this article, OpinionFront compiles a list of all the nations where English is spoken.
Did You Know?
English is not an official language in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia―the countries where it is the native language.
The history of English goes back in the 5th century A.D., when Germanic tribes had invaded Britain. One of the tribes, Angles, came from “England”, from which the words “English” and “England” were derived. Since then, English has gone through various changes as Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English, and Modern English.
Over the last 2,000 years, the language has undergone various grammatical as well as phonological changes. Today, it is the third most-spoken native language after Spanish and Mandarin. It is the primary language of several sovereign states, and is widely learned as a second language in several countries.
English-speaking Countries and Territories
RANK | COUNTRY/TERRITORY | TOTAL POPULATION | TOTAL ENGLISH SPEAKERS | ENGLISH SPEAKERS (%) |
#1 | Isle of Man | 84,500 | 84,500 | 100 |
#2 | American Samoa | 55,500 | 55,500 | 100 |
#3 | Gibraltar | 30,000 | 30,000 | 100 |
#4 | British Indian Ocean Territory | 3,000 | 3,000 | 100 |
#5 | Barbados | 285,000 | 280,700 | 98.5 |
#6 | United Kingdom | 64,105,700 | 62,823,500 | 98 |
#7 | Ireland | 4,593,100 | 4,501,200 | 98 |
#8 | New Zealand | 4,546,200 | 4,455,300 | 98 |
#9 | Jamaica | 2,718,000 | 2,650,100 | 97.5 |
#10 | Australia | 23,591,500 | 22,883,800 | 97 |
#11 | Bermuda | 64,200 | 62,300 | 97 |
#12 | U.S. Virgin Islands | 106,400 | 102,100 | #96 |
#13 | Falkland Islands | 3,000 | 2,900 | 95.5 |
#14 | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 109,000 | 103,600 | 95 |
#15 | United States | 318,554,000 | 299,440,800 | 94 |
#16 | Dominica | 71,300 | 67,000 | 94 |
#17 | Niue | 1,600 | 1,500 | 94 |
#18 | Marshall Islands | 60,000 | 56,100 | 93.5 |
#19 | Palau | 21,000 | 19,400 | 92.5 |
#20 | Anguilla | 13,500 | 12,400 | 92 |
#21 | Pitcairn Islands | 56 | 50 | 92 |
#22 | Guam | 159,400 | 145,100 | 91 |
#23 | Grenada | 103,300 | 94,000 | 91 |
#24 | Guyana | 784,900 | 710,300 | 90.5 |
#25 | Netherlands | 16,863,400 | 15,177,100 | 90 |
#26 | Malta | 416,000 | 370,200 | 89 |
#27 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1,328,000 | 1,162,000 | 87.5 |
#28 | Bahamas | 351,500 | 305,800 | 87 |
#29 | Suriname | 534,200 | 464,800 | 87 |
#30 | British Virgin Islands | 29,500 | 25,700 | 87 |
#31 | Sweden | 9,684,800 | 8,328,900 | 86 |
#32 | Denmark | 5,634,400 | 4,845,600 | 86 |
#33 | Canada | 35,427,500 | 30,290,500 | 85.5 |
#34 | Israel | 8,206,400 | 6,975,400 | 85 |
#35 | Vanuatu | 264,600 | 220,900 | 83.5 |
#36 | Sierra Leone | 6,190,300 | 5,168,900 | 83.5 |
#37 | Northern Mariana Islands | 53,900 | 44,700 | 83 |
#38 | Liberia | 4,397,000 | 3,627,500 | 82.5 |
#39 | St. Helena | 4,000 | 3,300 | 82 |
#40 | Belize | 349,700 | 285,000 | 81.5 |
#41 | Singapore | 5,399,200 | 4,319,400 | 80 |
#42 | Antigua and Barbuda | 86,300 | 69,000 | 80 |
#43 | Norfolk Island | 2,300 | 1,800 | 79.5 |
#44 | St. Kitts and Nevis | 55,000 | 42,900 | 78 |
#45 | Cayman Islands | 55,500 | 42,500 | 76.5 |
#46 | Austria | 8,527,200 | 6,224,900 | 73 |
#47 | Cyprus | 865,800 | 632,000 | 73 |
#48 | Finland | 5,460,500 | 3,822,300 | 70 |
#49 | Montserrat | 5,000 | 500 | 9.5 |
#50 | Germany | 80,716,000 | 51,658,200 | 64 |
#51 | Switzerland | 8,160,900 | 4,978,100 | 61 |
#52 | Nauru | 10,000 | 6,000 | 60 |
#53 | Belgium | 11,202,100 | 6,609,200 | 59 |
#54 | Slovenia | 2,063,600 | 1,217,500 | 59 |
#55 | Federated States of Micronesia | 101,400 | 58,300 | 57.5 |
#56 | Philippines | 100,083,700 | 56,547,300 | 56.5 |
#57 | Luxembourg | 549,700 | 307,800 | 56 |
#58 | Greece | 11,123,000 | 5,672,700 | 51 |
#59 | Estonia | 1,315,800 | 657,900 | 50 |
#60 | Netherlands Antilles | 227,100 | 113,600 | 50 |
#61 | Samoa | 187,800 | 93,900 | 50 |
#62 | Papua New Guinea | 7,398,500 | 3,699,300 | 50 |
#63 | Pakistan | 188,020,000 | 92,129,800 | 49 |
#64 | Croatia | 4,290,600 | 2,102,400 | 49 |
#65 | Puerto Rico | 3,615,000 | 1,753,300 | 48.5 |
#66 | Nepal | 26,494,500 | 12,319,900 | 46.5 |
#67 | Hong Kong | 7,219,700 | 3,321,100 | 46 |
#68 | Latvia | 1,996,500 | 918,400 | 46 |
#69 | Jordan | 6,618,000 | 2,978,100 | 45 |
#70 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3,791,600 | 1,706,220 | 45 |
#71 | St. Lucia | 180,000 | 77,400 | 43 |
#72 | Aruba | 101,500 | 43,100 | 42.5 |
#73 | Iran | 77,652,000 | 32,613,800 | 42 |
#74 | Zimbabwe | 13,061,200 | 5,420,400 | 41.5 |
#75 | Cameroon | 20,386,800 | 8,460,500 | 41.5 |
#76 | Lebanon | 4,966,000 | 1,986,400 | 40 |
#77 | Brunei | 393,200 | 153,300 | 39 |
#78 | France | 65,959,000 | 25,724,000 | 39 |
#79 | Botswana | 2,024,900 | 775,500 | 38 |
#80 | Lithuania | 2,939,400 | 1,117,000 | 38 |
#81 | Seychelles | 91,000 | 34,600 | 38 |
#82 | Egypt | 86,967,000 | 30,438,400 | 35 |
#83 | Iraq | 36,004,500 | 12,601,600 | 35 |
#84 | Italy | 60,762,300 | 20,659,200 | 34 |
#85 | Poland | 38,496,000 | 12,703,700 | 33 |
#86 | Solomon Islands | 581,300 | 183,100 | 31.5 |
#87 | South Africa | 54,002,000 | 16,740,600 | 31 |
#88 | Romania | 19,942,600 | 6,182,200 | 31 |
#89 | Tonga | 103,000 | 30,900 | 30 |
#90 | Lesotho | 2,098,000 | 587,400 | 28 |
#91 | Thailand | 64,456,700 | 17,403,300 | 27 |
#92 | Portugal | 10,477,800 | 2,829,000 | 27 |
#93 | Czech Republic | 10,517,400 | 2,839,700 | 27 |
#94 | Slovakia | 5,415,900 | 1,408,100 | 26 |
#95 | Bulgaria | 7,245,700 | 1,811,400 | 25 |
#96 | Kiribati | 106,500 | 25,600 | 24 |
#97 | Spain | 46,507,800 | 10,231,700 | 22 |
#98 | Andorra | 76,100 | 16,700 | 22 |
#99 | Ghana | 27,043,100 | 5,679,000 | 21 |
#100 | Fiji | 858,000 | 175,900 | 20.5 |
#101 | Malaysia | 30,229,000 | 6,196,900 | 20.5 |
#102 | Hungary | 9,879,000 | 1,975,800 | 20 |
#103 | Cook Islands | 15,000 | 3,000 | 20 |
#104 | Kenya | 45,546,000 | 8,653,700 | 19 |
#105 | India | 1,247,890,000 | 230,859,600 | 18.5 |
#106 | Bangladesh | 156,788,000 | 28,221,800 | 18 |
#107 | Madagascar | 21,263,400 | 3,827,400 | 18 |
#108 | Namibia | 2,113,100 | 359,200 | 17 |
#109 | Turkey | 76,667,800 | 13,033,500 | 17 |
#110 | Zambia | 15,023,300 | 2,403,700 | 16 |
#111 | Mauritius | 1,259,800 | 201,600 | 16 |
#112 | Kazakhstan | 17,285,000 | 2,679,200 | 15.5 |
#113 | Rwanda | 10,537,200 | 1,580,600 | 15 |
#114 | Morocco | 33,347,400 | 4,668,600 | 14 |
#115 | Bhutan | 750,500 | 86,300 | 11.5 |
#116 | Cambodia | 15,184,100 | 1,518,400 | 10 |
#117 | Sri Lanka | 20,277,600 | 2,027,800 | 10 |
#118 | Tanzania | 44,928,900 | 4,492,900 | 10 |
#119 | Chile | 17,773,000 | 1,688,400 | 9.5 |
#120 | Yemen | 25,235,000 | 2,271,100 | 9 |
#121 | Uganda | 35,357,000 | 2,828,600 | 8 |
#122 | Brazil | 202,991,000 | 16,239,300 | 8 |
#123 | Algeria | 38,700,000 | 38,700,000 | 7 |
#124 | Argentina | 42,669,500 | 2,773,500 | 6.5 |
#125 | Russia | 146,068,400 | 8,033,800 | 5.5 |
#126 | Mexico | 119,713,200 | 5,387,100 | 4.5 |
#127 | Swaziland | 1,268,000 | 57,100 | 4.5 |
#128 | Colombia | 47,722,000 | 1,908,900 | 4 |
#129 | Malawi | 16,829,000 | 673,200 | 4 |
#130 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 31,500 | 1,100 | 3.5 |
#131 | St. Pierre and Miquelon | 6,000 | 180 | 3 |
#132 | Tokelau | 1,400 | 40 | 3 |
#133 | Gambia | 1,882,500 | 47,100 | 2.5 |
#134 | China | 1,366,130,000 | 13,661,300 | 1 |
#135 | Honduras | 8,555,000 | 42,800 | 0.5 |
#136 | Ethiopia | 87,953,000 | 439,800 | 0.5 |
#137 | Dominican Republic | 10,378,300 | 51,900 | 0.5 |
#138 | Guadeloupe | 405,700 | 200 | 0.1 |
So, exactly how many countries speak English? Well, to answer that question, it is an official language in 83 countries, and is spoken in 55 other countries.