Official Languages of Every Country
This page lists the official language of all 197 countries.
128 countries have one official language in this dataset. The rest have two or more, and the table shows the most used one first.
What an official language is
An official language is a language the state uses for its own business: its laws, its courts and its schools.
An official language is not always the language most people speak at home. Several countries keep a former colonial language as the official one.
Some countries name no official language in law. This table then shows the language the national government uses.
The largest language groups
English is an official language in 59 countries. That is the largest group in this table.
French is official in 29 countries, Spanish in 20, and Arabic in 25.
The size of a group is a count of countries, not a count of speakers. A language with few countries can still have many speakers.
Official language by country
| Country | Official language(s) | Continent |
|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | Pashto, Dari | Asia |
| Albania | Albanian | Europe |
| Algeria | Arabic, Berber | Africa |
| Andorra | Catalan | Europe |
| Angola | Portuguese | Africa |
| Antigua and Barbuda | English | North America |
| Argentina | Spanish | South America |
| Armenia | Armenian | Asia |
| Australia | English | Oceania |
| Austria | German | Europe |
| Azerbaijan | Azerbaijani | Asia |
| Bahamas | English | North America |
| Bahrain | Arabic | Asia |
| Bangladesh | Bengali | Asia |
| Barbados | English | North America |
| Belarus | Belarusian, Russian | Europe |
| Belgium | Dutch, French, German | Europe |
| Belize | English | North America |
| Benin | French | Africa |
| Bhutan | Dzongkha | Asia |
| Bolivia | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara | South America |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian | Europe |
| Botswana | English, Tswana | Africa |
| Brazil | Portuguese | South America |
| Brunei | Malay | Asia |
| Bulgaria | Bulgarian | Europe |
| Burkina Faso | Mooré, Fula, Dioula | Africa |
| Burundi | Kirundi, French, English | Africa |
| Cambodia | Khmer | Asia |
| Cameroon | French, English | Africa |
| Canada | English, French | North America |
| Cape Verde | Portuguese | Africa |
| Central African Republic | French, Sango | Africa |
| Chad | French, Arabic | Africa |
| Chile | Spanish | South America |
| China | Mandarin Chinese | Asia |
| Colombia | Spanish | South America |
| Comoros | Comorian, French, Arabic | Africa |
| Costa Rica | Spanish | North America |
| Croatia | Croatian | Europe |
| Cuba | Spanish | North America |
| Cyprus | Greek, Turkish | Asia |
| Czech Republic | Czech | Europe |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | French | Africa |
| Denmark | Danish | Europe |
| Djibouti | French, Arabic | Africa |
| Dominica | English | North America |
| Dominican Republic | Spanish | North America |
| Ecuador | Spanish | South America |
| Egypt | Arabic | Africa |
| El Salvador | Spanish | North America |
| Equatorial Guinea | Spanish, French, Portuguese | Africa |
| Eritrea | Tigrinya, Arabic, English | Africa |
| Estonia | Estonian | Europe |
| Eswatini | Swazi, English | Africa |
| Ethiopia | Amharic, Oromo, Somali | Africa |
| Fiji | English, Fijian, Fiji Hindi | Oceania |
| Finland | Finnish, Swedish | Europe |
| France | French | Europe |
| Gabon | French | Africa |
| Gambia | English | Africa |
| Georgia | Georgian | Asia |
| Germany | German | Europe |
| Ghana | English | Africa |
| Greece | Greek | Europe |
| Grenada | English | North America |
| Guatemala | Spanish | North America |
| Guinea | French | Africa |
| Guinea-Bissau | Portuguese | Africa |
| Guyana | English | South America |
| Haiti | French, Haitian Creole | North America |
| Honduras | Spanish | North America |
| Hungary | Hungarian | Europe |
| Iceland | Icelandic | Europe |
| India | Hindi, English | Asia |
| Indonesia | Indonesian | Asia |
| Iran | Persian | Asia |
| Iraq | Arabic, Kurdish | Asia |
| Ireland | English, Irish | Europe |
| Israel | Hebrew, Arabic | Asia |
| Italy | Italian | Europe |
| Ivory Coast | French | Africa |
| Jamaica | English | North America |
| Japan | Japanese | Asia |
| Jordan | Arabic | Asia |
| Kazakhstan | Kazakh, Russian | Asia |
| Kenya | Swahili, English | Africa |
| Kiribati | Gilbertese, English | Oceania |
| Kosovo | Albanian, Serbian | Europe |
| Kuwait | Arabic | Asia |
| Kyrgyzstan | Kyrgyz, Russian | Asia |
| Laos | Lao | Asia |
| Latvia | Latvian | Europe |
| Lebanon | Arabic | Asia |
| Lesotho | Sesotho, English | Africa |
| Liberia | English | Africa |
| Libya | Arabic | Africa |
| Liechtenstein | German | Europe |
| Lithuania | Lithuanian | Europe |
| Luxembourg | Luxembourgish, French, German | Europe |
| Madagascar | Malagasy, French | Africa |
| Malawi | English, Chichewa | Africa |
| Malaysia | Malay | Asia |
| Maldives | Dhivehi | Asia |
| Mali | Bambara, French | Africa |
| Malta | Maltese, English | Europe |
| Marshall Islands | Marshallese, English | Oceania |
| Mauritania | Arabic | Africa |
| Mauritius | English, French | Africa |
| Mexico | Spanish | North America |
| Micronesia | English | Oceania |
| Moldova | Romanian | Europe |
| Monaco | French | Europe |
| Mongolia | Mongolian | Asia |
| Montenegro | Montenegrin, Serbian | Europe |
| Morocco | Arabic, Berber | Africa |
| Mozambique | Portuguese | Africa |
| Myanmar | Burmese | Asia |
| Namibia | English | Africa |
| Nauru | Nauruan, English | Oceania |
| Nepal | Nepali | Asia |
| Netherlands | Dutch | Europe |
| New Zealand | English, Maori | Oceania |
| Nicaragua | Spanish | North America |
| Niger | Hausa, French | Africa |
| Nigeria | English | Africa |
| North Korea | Korean | Asia |
| North Macedonia | Macedonian, Albanian | Europe |
| Norway | Norwegian | Europe |
| Oman | Arabic | Asia |
| Pakistan | Urdu, English | Asia |
| Palau | Palauan, English | Oceania |
| Palestine | Arabic | Asia |
| Panama | Spanish | North America |
| Papua New Guinea | English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu | Oceania |
| Paraguay | Spanish, Guarani | South America |
| Peru | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara | South America |
| Philippines | Filipino, English | Asia |
| Poland | Polish | Europe |
| Portugal | Portuguese | Europe |
| Qatar | Arabic | Asia |
| Republic of the Congo | French | Africa |
| Romania | Romanian | Europe |
| Russia | Russian | Europe |
| Rwanda | Kinyarwanda, English, French | Africa |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | English | North America |
| Saint Lucia | English | North America |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | English | North America |
| Samoa | Samoan, English | Oceania |
| San Marino | Italian | Europe |
| Sao Tome and Principe | Portuguese | Africa |
| Saudi Arabia | Arabic | Asia |
| Senegal | French | Africa |
| Serbia | Serbian | Europe |
| Seychelles | Seychellois Creole, English, French | Africa |
| Sierra Leone | English | Africa |
| Singapore | English, Malay, Mandarin Chinese | Asia |
| Slovakia | Slovak | Europe |
| Slovenia | Slovenian | Europe |
| Solomon Islands | English | Oceania |
| Somalia | Somali, Arabic | Africa |
| South Africa | English, Zulu, Afrikaans | Africa |
| South Korea | Korean | Asia |
| South Sudan | English | Africa |
| Spain | Spanish | Europe |
| Sri Lanka | Sinhala, Tamil | Asia |
| Sudan | Arabic, English | Africa |
| Suriname | Dutch | South America |
| Sweden | Swedish | Europe |
| Switzerland | German, French, Italian | Europe |
| Syria | Arabic | Asia |
| Taiwan | Mandarin Chinese | Asia |
| Tajikistan | Tajik | Asia |
| Tanzania | Swahili, English | Africa |
| Thailand | Thai | Asia |
| Timor-Leste | Tetum, Portuguese | Asia |
| Togo | French | Africa |
| Tonga | Tongan, English | Oceania |
| Trinidad and Tobago | English | North America |
| Tunisia | Arabic | Africa |
| Turkey | Turkish | Asia |
| Turkmenistan | Turkmen | Asia |
| Tuvalu | Tuvaluan, English | Oceania |
| Uganda | English, Swahili | Africa |
| Ukraine | Ukrainian | Europe |
| United Arab Emirates | Arabic | Asia |
| United Kingdom | English | Europe |
| United States | English | North America |
| Uruguay | Spanish | South America |
| Uzbekistan | Uzbek | Asia |
| Vanuatu | Bislama, English, French | Oceania |
| Vatican City | Italian, Latin | Europe |
| Venezuela | Spanish | South America |
| Vietnam | Vietnamese | Asia |
| Yemen | Arabic | Asia |
| Zambia | English | Africa |
| Zimbabwe | English, Shona, Ndebele | Africa |
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Sources
- Official languages are held in the Daily Country dataset, most used first.
Found a mistake in this list? Tell us and we will correct it.