| Arabic (North Africa, Horn of Africa) | 100 native + 30 secondary |
|---|---|
| Tswana (Southern Africa) | 4 |
| Kanuri (West Africa) | 4 |
| Umbundu (Angola) | 4 |
What is the main language spoken in West Africa?
English. In West Africa, English is the primary language of many countries. Nations like Nigeria, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ghana speak it officially.
How many languages are in West Africa?
in West Africa. These languages are of very unequal importance. The 130 languages most spoken (with more than 200,000 speakers) represent more than 80% of the regional population i.e. 240 million people. And the first five languages alone are spoken by 120 million people (see Figure 1).
What languages are spoken in West Africa?
Other important West African languages are Yoruba, Igbo, Akan and Fula. Major Horn of Africa languages are Somali, Amharic and Oromo. Important South African languages are Sotho, Tswana, Pedi, Venda, Tsonga, Swazi, Southern Ndebele, Zulu, Xhosa and Afrikaans.
Is French spoken in West Africa?
the French spoken by people in West and Central Africa – spoken altogether by about 97 million people in 2018, as either a first or second language. … The French spoken in this region is not to be confused with the French-based creole languages, which are also spoken in the area.
What are the problems in West Africa?
However, other forms of political violence and new threats have emerged such as election related violence, longstanding ethno-national conflict, drug trafficking, maritime piracy, and extremism. Other stresses include youth inclusion, migration, the rapid development of extractive industries, and land management.
What 3 religions are most practiced in West Africa?
- Christianity (49%)
- Islam (42%)
- Traditional faiths (8%)
What is the oldest African language?
Afrikaans is one of the official languages of South Africa. It belongs to the West Germanic branch of the Indo-European family. It evolved from the variety of Dutch which was spoken by Dutch settlers in South Africa.
What part of Africa were slaves taken from?
The majority of all people enslaved in the New World came from West Central Africa. Before 1519, all Africans carried into the Atlantic disembarked at Old World ports, mainly Europe and the offshore Atlantic islands.
What is the main religion in West Africa?
Close to half of all West Africans are Muslim and it’s very much a north–south divide: the countries of the Sahel and Sahara are predominantly Muslim, while Christianity is more widespread in the southern coastal countries.
What does Africa mean in Latin?
Afri (singular Afer) was a Latin name for the inhabitants of Africa, referring in its widest sense to all the lands south of the Mediterranean (Ancient Libya). Latin speakers at first used afer as an adjective, meaning “of Africa”. As a substantive, it denoted a native of Africa; i.e., an African.
How many countries are in West Africa?
The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 17 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo, as well as the United Kingdom Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da …
Which African country has the most languages?
Nigeria: And the African country with the most languages is… Nigeria. The official language is English, while 24 million people speak Igbo. 4.
What percentage of Africa speaks French?
High birth rates. There are 300 million French speakers worldwide today, up almost 10% since 2014, and a recent survey showed that 44% of them live in sub-Saharan Africa.
Which African country speaks French?
Like many African nations, Mali is a multilingual country. The official language is French, Bambara is the lingua franca, the national language, and the most widely spoken language. English and French are de facto official languages.
Is French useful in Africa?
French is official language in most West African countries and it is spoken at national and functions as well as in the media. Each country may have its own way of pronouncing of some french words but on the whole French serve as a unifying factor among all these Francophone countries.