Tuesday, July 1, 2008

LANGUAGES


Various languages are spoken in the Americas. Some are of European origin, others are spoken by indigenous peoples or are the mixture of various idioms like the different creoles.

The dominant language of Latin America is Spanish , though the largest nation in Latin America, Brazil , speaks Portuguese . Small enclaves of French- and English-speaking regions also exist in Latin America, notably in French Guiana and Nicaragua's Mosquito coast , respectively, and Haitian Creole of French origin, is dominant in the nation of Hati . Native languages are more prominent in Latin America than in Anglo-America , with Nahuatl ,Aymara and Guarani as the most common. Various other native languages are spoken with lesser frequency across both Anglo-America and Latin America. Creole languages other than Haitian Creole are also spoken in parts of Latin America.

The dominant language of Anglo-America, as the name suggests, is English . French is also official in Canada , where it is the predominant language in Quebec and an official language in New Brunswick along with English. It is also an important language in the U.S. state of Lousiana . Spanish has become widely spoken in parts of the U.S due to heavy immigration from Latin America. High levels of immigration in general have brought great linguistic diversity to Anglo-America, with over 300 languages known to be spoken in the United States alone, but most languages are spoken only in small enclaves and by relatively small immigrant groups.

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