Learn Spanish, The Use of Spanish Is Increasing In The USA

The number of homes that speak a foreign language in the United States, and in particular Spanish, has risen by 8 million since the year 2000, according to the United States Census Office.

Today, 19.7% of the US population above 5 years old speaks a foreign language, compared with 17.9% in the year 2000.

According to demographic experts, this rise is mainly due to the growth in Latin American immigration in the last few years.

Demographic expert, William Frey, from the Brookings Institution, explained that, “the population has increased in non-traditional areas, such as Delaware, Nevada, Utah and even in Southern Dakota…and this is a tendency that will continue”.

Hispanic people form the largest minority group in the US - 43 million out of a total population of 300 million. An estimated 12 million are illegal immigrants, mostly from Mexico.

Many don’t speak English and have more than one job, working long hours in order to stay in the country and to send money to their families. This makes it difficult for them to learn English.

Conservative groups see the growing popularity of the Spanish language as a threat to the United States’ traditional values and culture.

Yet the number of books, CD’s and all types of products aimed at the Hispanic market is on the rise in the US.

Spanish translations are also a common sight on signposts at airports, government offices and all kinds of shops.

“Being able to speak another language isn’t necessarily a step backwards; becoming bilingual is widely seen as advantageous for a person or country”, said Jeanne Batalova, immigration expert at the Migration Policy Institute (MPI).

The MPI claims that if the US Government were to spend 200 million dollars per year on classes for the next 6 years, it would be able to teach English to all legal immigrants.

“And if it were to spend another 2900 million on teaching illegal immigrants, it would secure the integration of all immigrants into the American way of life”, said Batalova.

As the article states, nowadays it's becoming more and more important to learn spanish and other foreign languages. Alan La Rue is the director of WebSpanish, an online school that provides online spanish lessons to students from all over the world.