This is the Language Each Country Wants to Learn the Most

When it came to choosing a new hobby during COVID-19 lockdowns, learning a new language was a popular choice—in March 2020, the language app Duolingo saw a 300% boost in new users.

But which languages were the most popular to learn in each country? This graphic by Wordtips maps the most popular language learning choices around the globe.

To find out which countries wanted to learn which languages, Wordtips used Google’s Keyword Planner, and tallied the number of searches for ‘learn x language’ (translated into different languages) in every country from May 2020 to May 2021.

Most Desired Languages to Learn in North America

Interestingly, Japanese is the most popular language that Americans and Canadians want to learn.

While this may sound surprising, North Americans have consumed and adored Japanese pop culture since the early 1990s. And recently, Westerners’ interest in anime has grown even more prominent, with the demand for anime programs in the U.S., for Q1 of 2021, up 33% compared to a year prior.

Another country’s top pick that may come as a surprise is Belize, where the most popular language to learn is Chinese.

According to the 2000 Census, almost 1% of the country’s population identifies as Chinese. Chinese immigration to Belize began in the mid-1800s, when Chinese immigrants were brought into the country (then known as British Honduras) as laborers.

More recently, a wave of Taiwanese migrants have immigrated and set up businesses (Read more…)