Today at YOKO we aim to appreciate the importance of the language with the largest number of native speakers in the European Union… Any guesses?
Yes, the German language has played a vital role for centuries in Europe and on the world stage, and it is spoken approximately by 130 million people around the world (as mother tongue or functional second language.)
German plays a vital role for economy too – Germany, the most populous nation in the European Union, is one of the top destinations for foreign direct investment globally. For that reason, German is considered to be a major asset in the global market.
Let’s have a look then at some of the most interesting facts about this language. You’ll be surprised!
- German is the only official language in Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein and ranks as an official language in Switzerland, Luxembourg and Belgium.
- German is also spoken in some parts of Northern Italy, in the Province of Alto Adige (Südtirol).
- German belongs to the West Germanic group of the Indo-European language family, along with English, Frisian, and Dutch (Netherlandic, Flemish).
- According to a survey conducted by the German Foreign Office together with the Goethe Institute and Deutsche Welle, there are about 15.4 million people learning German in 2020. Although they are mostly based in Europe, the number of German learners has increased in some African countries and in China.
- When it comes to business and world economy, it comes as no surprise that Germany leads the way. With a GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of over 3.3 trillion Euros, the German economy was by far the largest in Europe in 2020.
- Germany is also one of the three largest trading nations in the world. Despite the pandemic, it is still considered one of the most international economies in the world -- around 50% of its annual GDP is exported to other countries. As a consequence, German language services are commonly used in many countries.
- German companies dominate around 70% of the market for premium automobiles. The automotive industry is Germany is gigantic and globally manufactured and distributed, and therefore in constant need of professional translation services.
- Apart from the automotive industry, there are three more sectors that dominate the industry in Germany: mechanical engineering, chemical and electrical industries.
- Germany is the biggest e-commerce market in Europe.
The importance of the German language to the global market is quite clear now. Working with German enterprises could expose you to incredible business opportunities.
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