Editing Spanish language (section)

== Speaker population ==

Spanish is the official, or national language in [[Hispanic America|18 countries and one territory in the Americas]], [[Spain]], and [[Equatorial Guinea]]. With a population of over 410 million, [[Spanish language in the Americas|Hispanophone America]] accounts for the vast majority of Spanish speakers, of which [[Mexico]] is the most populous Spanish-speaking country. In the [[European Union]], Spanish is the [[First language|mother tongue]] of 8% of the population, with an additional 7% speaking it as a second language.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf |title=Europeans and their Languages |access-date=2 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160106183351/http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_386_en.pdf |archive-date=6 January 2016}}</ref> Additionally, Spanish is the second most spoken language in the [[United States]] and is by far the most popular foreign language among students.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905275.html |title=Most Studied Foreign Languages in the U.S |publisher=Infoplease.com |access-date=20 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120814042126/http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0905275.html |archive-date=14 August 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, it was estimated that over 50 million Americans spoke Spanish, about 41 million of whom were native speakers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/29/us-second-biggest-spanish-speaking-country|title=US now has more Spanish speakers than Spain – only Mexico has more|work=The Guardian|date=29 June 2015|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=23 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123045244/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/29/us-second-biggest-spanish-speaking-country|url-status=live}}</ref> With continued immigration and increased use of the language domestically in public spheres and media, the number of Spanish speakers in the United States is expected to continue growing over the forthcoming decades.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2011/demo/2011-Shin-Ortman.html|title=Language Projections: 2010 to 2020|publisher=United States Census Bureau|website=The United States Census Bureau|access-date=19 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190819054204/https://www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2011/demo/2011-Shin-Ortman.html|archive-date=19 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>