Learning a foreign language has become more important than ever in the global business space. Becoming fluent in one or more languages a company does business in can help you better understand their target market, and keep you in touch with the needs of their local consumer base. In this article, we’ll lay out the 9 best languages to learn for doing business.
1. English English is often considered to be “the language of international business” because it is used by millions of companies around the globe. There are more than 1 billion speakers of English in the world, and it is one of the most taught languages. In fact, most speakers of English in the world are not native speakers!
2. Mandarin Mandarin Chinese is one of the best languages for business because it is spoken by more than 1 billion people worldwide. Besides that, China is a global manufacturing powerhouse (think of all the “made in China” products) and is home to large international corporations like Alibaba, Tencent, and Tiktok.
3. Spanish Spanish is another good choice to learn for business because it’s one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, with more than 500 million speakers. Spanish is the official language of Spain as well as of many countries in South and Central America, and is spoken by a sizable portion of people in the United States.
4. Arabic Arabic is one of the best languages to learn for business because of the lucrative oil and gas industries in the Middle East. Arabic is spoken primarily in the Middle East and northern Africa by more than 400 million people.
5. Portuguese Portuguese is a good language to learn because it is an official language in several international organizations (such as the EU and the African Union) and is used in many humanitarian spheres. There are 250 million speakers of Portuguese across Portugal, Africa, and South America. Brazilian Portuguese is particularly lucrative to learn because Brazil is home to many prominent companies in the banking and tourism industries.
6. German Anyone interested in doing business in Europe should consider learning German. About 134 million people speak German throughout the world, although most of them are concentrated in central European countries such as Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Germany is a notable world-banking center, housing the head office of the European Central Bank.
7. French There are several reasons why French is good to learn for business. First, French is spoken by nearly 80 million people as a first language and is the official language of 13 countries (including France, Canada, and Switzerland). This makes it useful for business in many areas of the globe. Second, French is an official language of several international organizations, like the United Nations and the World Trade Organization.
8. Japanese Even though most of its 125 million speakers reside in a single country, learning Japanese can give you a leg up in the business world. Japan is a leader in a whole host of different industries, from automobiles to consumer electronics. Business in Japan is often done using the most polite form of Japanese, called keigo, which can be tricky to learn.
9. Hindi Learning Hindi can help you do business in a country with one of the fastest-growing economies in the world – India. Hindi is the most prominent of the 20+ languages spoken in India, with 500 million speakers. India has the world’s largest consumer market for goods and services, so you can be sure that there will continue to be a strong demand for bilingual speakers of Hindi in the business space.
What is the Best Way to Learn a Language for Business? While there is no one “best way” to learn a language for business, many people choose to learn using apps. Apps that offer content geared towards a business environment are the best choice. Mango Languages, for example, offers courses specifically designed for doing business in Mandarin, Spanish, and English for speakers of Spanish. So what are you waiting for? Get down to business and start learning today!
