It’s hard to believe right?
But it’s true. Most of the world’s population, including both, Spanish as well as non-Spanish speakers, believe that Spanish is a European language that is most widely spoken in the European continent.
Well, the fact is that the greatest number of Spanish speakers are not found in the European continent but live in the Latin American countries. Another shocking fact is that there is a decent number of Spanish speakers in the United States as well.
Spanish is the second most spoken language in the US and is among the top spoken languages of the world. The presence of Spanish is beyond continents. The language is spoken in Asia and Africa as well.
Therefore, Spanish translation is one of the most demanded services in today’s time. Let’s go in deep and know about the countries speaking Spanish in the African region.
The Spanish Language
Romans introduced the Iberian Peninsula with their native language called Latin. But, Latin started to fade away after the fall of the Roman Empire. Well, the language is not completely out of use. The most popular European languages today are Latin’s offsprings- Spanish & Portuguese.
These languages are the romance languages and are quite popularly spoken in the South American, European, and Central African regions of the world. When compared to others, Spanish is the most spoken romance language in the world.
There are more than 600 million people across the planet who speak Spanish. The language is popular in different parts of the globe and is the official language in more than 20 countries. The American countries with a great number of speakers of two daughter languages of Latin i.e., Spanish & Portuguese is known as Latin America.
Besides being a European language, the maximum number of native Spanish speakers live in Latin America. It is also the second most popularly spoken language in the United States. These facts make it interesting to know if the language is also popularly spoken in other continents as well or not?
Yes, Spanish is one of the languages which is spoken in Africa and Asia as well. The number of speakers is not vast but it is one of the few languages which is spoken on multiple continents.
The Only Spanish Speaking Country of Africa
Africa is home to thousands of languages. There are many indigenous languages present in Africa. But, due to the popularity of foreign languages, there are a few African languages that have gone extinct. One such foreign language is Spanish.
The only African country with Spanish as an official language is Equatorial Guinea. The dialect of Spanish spoken here is called Equatoguinean Spanish. It is interesting to know that this is also a country with a huge number of French speakers as French is also one of the official languages in the country.
In the capital city of Equatorial Guinea, Malabo, Spanish is spoken by the people as their native language. More than 67% of the overall population of the country speaks Spanish. Out of the multiple aboriginal and indigenous languages spoken in the country, Spanish is the most widely spoken and the most popular language.
How Spanish Came to Equatorial Guinea?
Initially, the European powers came to the country in 1472 at the Island of Bioko. This island was colonized by the Portuguese for several years with little success. Later, in 1778, the Portuguese queen signed a treaty and the island was given over to Spain.
After the Spanish abolishment of Slavery in the year 1817, the island was not valued enough by Spain and was used for plantations. After some time, it got populated by many freed slaves, African immigrants, Cubans, Filipinos, Jews, Catalans, and some Spaniards.
The footprints of these different linguistic groups can clearly be seen in the Spanish dialect now being spoken in the country. In 1926, the Bioko and the mainland region were united as Spanish Guinea and gained its independence in 1968 and Equatorial Guinea was formed.
The country has been a colony of Spanish since then. Spain was disadvantaged for settling new colonies in the region which is why Equatorial Guinea is the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa.
Other Languages of Equatorial Guinea
The local dialect of Spanish called Equatoguinean Spanish is the most commonly spoken language in the country with 90% of the population speaking it. Out of this, 68% are Spanish native speakers. This dialect of Spanish is closely related to European Spanish and not Latin American Spanish.
Portuguese and French are the other languages spoken in the country and are also the official languages along with Spanish. The local and the indigenous languages of Equatorial Guinea mostly belong to the Bantu language family.
These languages are Bube, Bujeba, Baseke, Benga, Balengue, Fa d’Ambo, Fang, Gumu, Pichinglis, and Igbo.
Spanish Speakers in Other Regions of Africa
Equatorial Guinea is practically the only country in the African continent where Spanish is an official language. But there are other regions in Africa that speak Spanish. Interestingly, Spain has some African colonies or territories. Spanish is spoken in various parts of Western Sahara, northern parts of Morocco, Canary Islands, and Mauretania.
Importance of Spanish Translation in the African Continent
Spanish is not one of the major languages in the African continent but there is a decent number of population speaking the language. The need for Spanish translation services is important when targeting the African continent to reach out to these native Spanish speakers.
If a business is targeting the Western Sahara parts of the continent, Equatorial Guinea & Northern Morocco, it is vital to translate your content into the Spanish language. Majority of the people living in these regions either prefer speaking Spanish or are native Spanish speakers.
You can hire Transcription Services US, the best Spanish translation service provider in the nation, for your translation needs. Translating all forms of content will help you target your audience in a much better way as it gives a local feel to the customers. The website localization, translating online ads, brochures, and all other forms of content will make it easy for you to establish a connection with the target audience.
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