| Also Known As: Spanish language,Castillian,Castellano,Castilian,Castillan,Spanish,Español
Description:
Spanish (español or castellano) is a Romance language that originated in northern Spain, and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile and evolved into the principal language of government and trade. It was taken most notably to the Americas, and also to Africa and Asia Pacific with the expansion of the Spanish Empire between the fifteenth and nineteenth centuries.
Today, about 400 million people speak Spanish as a native language, making it the world's second most spoken language in terms of native speakers. However, it is fourth in terms of total speakers. Mexico contains the largest population of Spanish speakers.
Spanish is growing increasingly popular as a second or third language in a number of countries because of logistical, economic, and touristic interest towards the many nations which chiefly use Spanish as the primary language. This phenomenon is most notable in Brazil, the United States, Italy, France, Portugal, and much of the Anglosphere in general.
Spanish people tend to call this language español (Spanish) when contrasting it with languages such as French and English, but call it castellano (Castilian), that is, the language of the Castile region, when contrasting..... full article at Wikipedia |
Location of Spanish Language Speakers
http://llmap.org/languages/spa/static_map.png?width=400&height=300&kilroywashere=.png
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Rosetta Document Collection
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Overview
| Main Country: | Spain |
| Spoken In: |
Countries: Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Peru, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Uruguay, Andorra, Belize, Gibraltar, Spain
Regions: Europe
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| ISO 639-1 Code: | es |
| ISO 639-2 Code: | spa |
| ISO 639-3 Code: | spa |
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Classification Taxonomy
All Languages
Indo-European Group
Italic Group
Romance Group
Italo-Western Group
Western Italo-Western Group
Gallo-Iberian Group
Ibero-Romance Group
West Iberian Group
Castilian Group
Spanish Language
Andalusian Spanish
Mexican Spanish
Rioplatense Spanish
Puerto Rican Spanish
Caribbean Spanish
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