List of All Languages in the World: Language is basically a means of communication and a kind of depository of a community's heritage, traditions, and identity. It is through different languages that we have insights into the worldview of the speakers, into the customs, beliefs, and knowledge systems.
According to Ethnologue, there are more than 7,159 languages in the world, of which about 44% are endangered, with many having less than 1,000 users remaining. At the same time, the 20 largest worldwide languages are native to more than 3.7 billion people.
That is only 0.3% of global languages spoken by about half of the world's population. Papua New Guinea is considered the most linguistically diverse country in the world, with about 840 indigenous languages spoken throughout its islands.
This article will explore the languages being spoken in the world, the countries that have linguistic diversity at its best, and the significance of the endangered languages preservation.
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How Many Languages Are in the World? Complete List
Current estimates suggest that approximately 7,139 living languages exist globally, though this number varies slightly depending on classification criteria and methodological approaches used by different linguistic authorities. According to Ethnologue, there are a total of 7,159 languages spoken in the world.
Asia, obviously, is the most linguistically diverse continent, with about 2,300 languages – about 32.2% of the world's total linguistic diversity. Africa follows in second place in linguistic diversity, with 2,144 acknowledged languages making up about 30% of the world's languages.
Source: Statista
Africa's linguistic wealth is derived from its status as the cradle of mankind and, consequently, the presence of many separate ethnic groups scattered throughout various geographical regions.
Nigeria itself is highly varied, with, according to SIL Ethnologue, over 500 languages, representing one of the richest concentrations of linguistic diversity in the world. The Pacific has its smaller landmass but a tremendous amount of linguistic density; hence, 1,313 languages are scattered across island nations and coastal areas.
This comprises around 18.4% of world languages, with Papua New Guinea granted the honour of the most linguistically diverse country in the world, comprising some 840 languages – more than twice as many as in all of Europe.
| Continent | Main Languages | Number of Living Languages | Total Languages | Percentage of All Languages |
| Asia | Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Arabic, Bengali, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese | 2,300 | 2,300 | 32.2% |
| Africa | Arabic, Swahili, Amharic, Oromo, Igbo, Somali, Hausa, Yoruba, Fulani | 2,144 | 2,144 | 30.0% |
| Pacific | English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu, Melanesian languages, Polynesian languages | 1,313 | 1,313 | 18.4% |
| Americas | English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Quechua, Guaraní, Nahuatl | 1,061 | 1,061 | 14.9% |
| Europe | English, Russian, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, Ukrainian | 287 | 287 | 4.0% |
With 1,061 languages, the Americas account for some 14.9% of all language diversity in the world. Many of the distributions represent the indigenous language traditions said to exist before the colonisation of the Europeans as well as the linguistically complex landscape formulated by the Europeans after their settlement.
Thus, many of the Native American languages are under the specific threat of survival, as European languages such as English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch replaced numerous indigenous languages in the colonial period.
Europe, conversely, is given 287 different languages, constituting about 4.0% of global linguistic diversity; even with this relatively smaller proportion, European languages have fairly greatly influenced the rest of the world through historical colonisation and good modernisation in recent times.
The continent has more than 250 indigenous languages, most of which belong to the Indo-European language family. The three biggest phyla of Indo-European languages in Europe, Romance, Germanic, and Slavic, all account for more than 200 million speakers and constitute about 90% of Europeans.
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How Many Total Languages Are Spoken Worldwide According to Ethnologue?
According to Ethnologue, there are approximately 7,159 living languages spoken worldwide as of 2025. This figure is based on the most recent data compiled by Ethnologue, which is widely recognised as the authoritative source for global language statistics. The number is constantly changing due to language evolution, extinction, and new research, but 7,159 is the latest exact count reported.
What Are the Main Languages Spoken on Each Continent and Their Counts?
According to the latest data available, here are the main languages spoken on each continent.
| Continent | Main Languages (by number of speakers) | Approximate Number of Speakers (Millions) |
| Asia | Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Bengali, Japanese, Russian, Turkish, Vietnamese, Persian, Filipino, Indonesian |
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| Africa | Swahili, Arabic, Hausa, Amharic, Yoruba, Oromo, Igbo, Zulu, Shona, Somali, Berber |
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| Europe | Russian, German, French, Italian, English, Spanish, Polish, Ukrainian, Romanian, Dutch |
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| Americas | English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Quechua, Guaraní, Nahuatl |
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| Oceania/Pacific | English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu, Fijian, Samoan, Tongan, Māori, Hawaiian |
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Notes:
- The numbers are rounded estimates and include both native and total speakers, as available.
- Some languages (e.g., Russian, Turkish, Arabic, English, and French) are spoken across more than one continent; counts may include speakers from multiple regions.
- The main languages listed are those with the highest speakers on each continent, not an exhaustive list of all significant languages.
Which Continent Has the Highest Number of Living Languages?
Asia has the highest number of living languages among all continents, with approximately 2,300 languages spoken—representing about 32% of the world’s total. Africa follows closely with about 2,000 living languages, or roughly 30%. The Pacific region, which includes highly diverse countries like Papua New Guinea, is third, but as a continent, Asia leads in total count.
Reasons for Asia’s linguistic diversity:
- Vast and varied geography, including mountains, islands, and remote regions, which has historically isolated communities and allowed distinct languages to develop.
- Long, complex histories of migration, settlement, and cultural evolution.
- Presence of many indigenous and ethnic groups, each with their own languages
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Conclusion: Language Endangerment and Preservation Challenges
Right now, nearly half of the world's languages are in danger of vanishing forever. Out of about 7,168 languages spoken today, 3,078 are at risk, affecting over 88 million people.
Where Are Most Endangered Languages?
- Most of these endangered languages are concentrated in just 25 countries.
- Indonesia has the most, with 425 languages at risk. Papua New Guinea follows with 312. Australia has 190. The United States has 180.
- These four countries alone are home to more than a thousand endangered languages, showing how urgent it is to protect them in these areas.
Why Are Languages Disappearing?
Many endangered languages are spoken by Indigenous communities. When a language becomes extinct, it frequently means that unique cultures and valuable knowledge systems are lost forever.
Languages are disappearing for a few main reasons:
- Cultural assimilation: People are pressured to adopt the culture of the dominant group.
- Language shift: People are switching to more widely spoken languages.
- Abandonment: People are gradually giving up their native languages for those that offer better economic or social opportunities.
This is not a new phenomenon; similar events occurred during European colonisation, when many Indigenous languages were replaced by colonisers' languages.
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