Languages
The United Kingdom has no official language. The dominant language, spoken as a first language by 95% of the population, is English. Scots is spoken by around 500,000 people in Scotland and 30,000 in Northern Ireland, where it is called Ulster Scots. Welsh is spoken by around 600,000 people. Scottish Gaelic is spoken by about 60,000 speakers, mostly in Scotland. Cornish is spoken by around 2,500 people. Irish is spoken by about 106,844 speakers in Northern Ireland.
The Polish minority in the United Kingdom estimated over 600,000 people speak mostly Polish at home, Poles are mainly Polish-born immigrants to the UK, although many are those who settled in Britain after the second world war and their descendants. The French language is spoken in the Channel Islands. British Sign Language is also common.
Read more about this topic: Demography Of The United Kingdom
Famous quotes containing the word languages:
“It is time for dead languages to be quiet.”
—Natalie Clifford Barney (1876–1972)
“I am always sorry when any language is lost, because languages are the pedigree of nations.”
—Samuel Johnson (1709–1784)
“People in places many of us never heard of, whose names we can’t pronounce or even spell, are speaking up for themselves. They speak in languages we once classified as “exotic” but whose mastery is now essential for our diplomats and businessmen. But what they say is very much the same the world over. They want a decent standard of living. They want human dignity and a voice in their own futures. They want their children to grow up strong and healthy and free.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (1911–1978)