Expanding language: why Spanish is a global phenomenon

In the hours leading up to a new international congress of the Spanish language, Córdoba is pregnant. The city is already experiencing a unique event, whose motto for this eighth edition is "America and the Future of Spanish: Culture and Education, Technology and Entrepreneurship", and nowadays, many people are watching La Docta under different coordinates of the Spanish-speaking world.

All information about the Language Congress, here

Now, in a world increasingly connected and traversed by technological change, what is the impact and global transcendence of language that brings us together in a transnational community that travels from the far north of Mexico to the shores? from the continent? Ushuaia, and also includes countries as different as Spain or Equatorial Guinea?

More and more weight

According to its website, the Cervantes Institute is "the public institution created by Spain in 1991 to universally promote the teaching, study and use of Spanish and contribute to the dissemination of Hispanic cultures abroad.

Its function is to safeguard "the linguistic and cultural heritage common to the countries and peoples of the Spanish-speaking community". As a result, it is present in 87 centers in 44 countries on five continents.

Every year, the headquarters of Cervantes produces a report entitled Spanish in the world, where he reports interesting numbers recorded globally. Figures which, moreover, make it possible to understand the current growth of our language on the linguistic map of this particular moment of history, where 6 000 to 6 500 varieties are recorded.

According to the document published end 2018 (entitled Spanish: a living language), 577 million people speak, read and write Spanish at different levels around the world. This figure is just under 8% of the world's population, but it is still a high percentage, for example in French, Arabic or Portuguese.

In fact, behind Mandarin Chinese (which has 950 million speakers), it is the second language with the largest number of users (mother tongue, limited skills and / or students) of the planet. .

He also holds this position in the table of mother tongues, with a total of 480 million native speakers.

The quantity is not the power

Despite these figures, Spanish still does not have access to the podium of the most powerful languages, those which exert a greater influence because of factors such as "its geographical distribution and its dispersion, its economic weight, its capacity of communication , its use as a transmission tool. " know and use in the field of diplomacy ".

Although slightly behind the French, the Spanish occupies the fourth position of the payroll that leads with great advantage to the English and seconded to the Chinese. However, everything indicates that in a few years, more posts 3 and 4 of this list will be traded with the increasing demographic impact of those who speak Cervantes language.

In economic terms, for example, Spanish exceeds French, Arabic and Russian, according to data from the World Bank. Although far removed from English and Chinese (related to major world economies), the dispersion of Spanish over an entire continent (and more) provides data: all of Hispanic countries contributes 6.9 percent of global GDP.

According to the same report, "sharing the same language almost duplicates bilateral trade between countries".

However, two-thirds of the GDP badociated with Spanish are generated between North America (United States, Canada and Mexico) and Europe, regions that also account for 78% of the GDP. 39, purchase of speakers of our language.

The country of freedom

The population growth of Spanish and its speakers is one of the most interesting examples of this country in the United States.

According to the 2016 census, the world's largest power is experiencing a phenomenon of cultural exchange of great magnitude, with nearly 18% of its Hispanic population.

And all indications are that this number will continue to increase.

"By 2060, the United States will be the second largest Spanish-speaking country in the world after Mexico, according to estimates by the US Census Bureau, there will be 119 million Hispanics in 2060. This means that 28.6% of the US population, or nearly one in three American residents, will be Hispanic. "says the Cervantes Institute report.

In two worlds

Luis Alberto Ambroggio is one of the most representative poets of Hispanic writing in the north of the country. Settled in the country for over 51 years, the writer born in Rio Tercero in 1945 will be one of the illustrious visitors to the Cile, where he will talk about the complex cultural network of mutual exchanges that he describes in his book. Hispanic United States.

For him, Latin culture is already part of the symbolic framework that crosses a country as vast and diverse as the United States. "This is a notorious impact.I arrived at the end of 1967 and there were seven million Hispanics.We are today 58 million.Spanish is the second most studied language. and spoken in the United States after English, "he says.

"The Anglo-Saxon community recognizes the contribution of Hispanics to their history, which was previously ignored, for example, the country's first city was San Agustín, Florida, or the fact that a Hispanic immigrant is the one who laid the foundation stone of the White House Even Thomas Jefferson, one of the founders of this country, said that you have to learn Spanish because it was fundamental for relations with the United States and Europe and for the need to have different visions and cultures per se, "he explained.

"We are living in a period of Hispanic phobia, starting with President Donald Trump, but, on the other hand, there are signs of optimism: for the first time, a Supreme Court judge has been arrested. Hispanic origin is named, I think that the future is interesting and promising, the United States must create an American culture, not just Anglo-Saxon, there is already an awareness of the power of the Latino community ", badysis -t it.

Students

This demographic growth in the main territory of the planet has undeniable symbolic consequences.

It is no coincidence that the number of certified Spanish students now reaches nearly 22 million people worldwide, according to the Cervantes Institute report, which collects data with private education (stating that the actual demand increases by 25%) this number).

"The sharp increase in the number of Spanish as a foreign language students in recent years is due in large part to the intensification of trade between Spanish-speaking countries and the rest of the world. similarly, its recognition as an official language in the main international forums and having a constantly growing community of speakers are other factors that contribute to enhancing the attractiveness of Spanish as a foreign language " , completes the report.

Case studies: In the United States, Spanish is the most studied language at all levels of education and the number of students enrolled in Spanish courses at American universities exceeds the total number of students enrolled in courses in other languages.

In the UK, it is perceived as "the most important language for the future". And other countries such as France, Sweden or Denmark point to high levels of studying Spanish in secondary schools (though still behind English)

This experienced boom in teaching and learning our language comes with a bang media related to Latin culture as a whole, with a long list of songs, films, series and books that make the circulation of words, idioms and customs badociated with Spanish-speaking countries more and more common.

Idiomatic tourism

In this sense, idiomatic tourism is a phenomenon badociated with the overall expansion of the Spanish language.

Julio Bañuelos, president of the Tourism Agency of Córdoba, ratifies this agreement at the local level, noting the existence of a specific area devoted to this topic within his leadership.

"We have participated in thematic exhibitions and various events related to the subject, we went in search of this specific market", he badures, while indicating that today many German students arrive in the city, already accustomed to welcoming young Brazilians or Americans different schools of Spanish.

"Córdoba is a university town, with a lot of student movements, an ideal environment for young people," says the official, who emphasizes the regional and national connectivity of the city and the overflow that entails spending for foreigners coming study or study. the families who come to visit them if the stay is prolonged. In addition, he emphasizes the contribution of the agency Pro-Cordoba, linked to the promotion of foreign trade: "They see it as a kind of reverse importation, which is why we do a lot of money. actions together ".

And the future?

It is clear that this surge of Spanish in the world, both for its population growth and for its progressive advancement as a second language, is not something temporary. The number of Spanish Spaniards in the world will continue to grow, at least over the next few decades.

"Projections indicate that the Spanish-speaking community will continue to grow to reach the 756 million people with varying degrees of language proficiency in 2050. However, this trend reverses in 2100, when a decline is expected", indicates the Cervantes report.

The question, in any case, will come later. What will be the evolution of the Spanish language once your home community has stopped growing? What will happen when the tendency to "study Spanish" gives way to new linguistic phenomena? It will be these and other challenges that will continue to drive the need to keep thinking about our own language in an increasingly global context.