Understanding the official languages of all countries in the world is crucial for anyone interested in global communication, international relations, education, or even travel planning. This post provides a detailed and up-to-date table of list of countries and their official languages, covering all 195 recognized nations as of 2025. Whether you’re a student researching for academic work, a language learner curious about which countries speak French officially, or simply want to know the list of countries where English is the official language, this resource offers accurate, organized, and easily digestible information.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Meaning of an Official Language
- Importance of Official Languages
- Overview by Continent
- Countries with Multiple Official Languages
- Summary Table of Countries and Their Official Languages
- Revision Questions and Answers
Meaning of an Official Language
An official language is a language that a country or region has designated for use in its government, laws, courts, education, and public institutions. It is different from national or regional languages, which may be widely spoken but not legally required in official matters.
READ ALSO – List of Continents and major countries in the world
Importance of Official Languages
- Facilitates Government Operations: Ensures uniform communication across all branches of government.
- Preserves Cultural Heritage: Protects indigenous or native languages and traditions.
- Guides Educational Systems: Determines the language of instruction in public schools.
- Promotes National Unity: Serves as a common medium for diverse ethnic groups.
- Assists International Relations: Enhances communication in diplomacy, trade, and travel.
Overview by Continent
Africa
Africa is highly multilingual. Many African countries have both colonial languages (like English, French, Portuguese) and indigenous languages as official languages.
- Nigeria: English
- Kenya: English and Swahili
- South Africa: 11 official languages including English, Zulu, Afrikaans
- Cameroon: French and English
- Ethiopia: Amharic
Asia
Asia features a wide range of languages from Arabic to Mandarin to Hindi.
- India: Hindi and English
- China: Mandarin (Standard Chinese)
- Saudi Arabia: Arabic
- Japan: Japanese
- Pakistan: Urdu and English
Europe
Europe has a mix of Romance, Germanic, and Slavic languages, most of which are official in various countries.
- France: French
- Germany: German
- Italy: Italian
- Russia: Russian
- Switzerland: German, French, Italian, Romansh
North America
The continent is dominated by English, Spanish, and French.
- USA: No official language at the federal level, but English is most widely used
- Canada: English and French
- Mexico: Spanish
- Haiti: French and Haitian Creole
- Cuba: Spanish
South America
Spanish and Portuguese dominate South America.
- Brazil: Portuguese
- Argentina: Spanish
- Chile: Spanish
- Paraguay: Spanish and Guaraní
- Bolivia: Spanish and 36 indigenous languages including Quechua and Aymara
Australia (Oceania)
English is dominant, but local and indigenous languages are gaining legal status.
- Australia: English
- New Zealand: English, Māori, New Zealand Sign Language
- Fiji: English, Fijian, Fiji Hindi
- Papua New Guinea: English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu
Antarctica
No official language; languages used depend on the research stations (English, Russian, Spanish, etc.).
Here is the list of the first 100 countries and their official languages in a tabular format:
List of Countries and Their Official Languages (1–100)
| S/N | Country | Official Language(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Afghanistan | Pashto, Dari |
| 2 | Albania | Albanian |
| 3 | Algeria | Arabic, Berber |
| 4 | Andorra | Catalan |
| 5 | Angola | Portuguese |
| 6 | Argentina | Spanish |
| 7 | Armenia | Armenian |
| 8 | Australia | English |
| 9 | Austria | German |
| 10 | Azerbaijan | Azerbaijani |
| 11 | Bahamas | English |
| 12 | Bahrain | Arabic |
| 13 | Bangladesh | Bengali |
| 14 | Barbados | English |
| 15 | Belarus | Belarusian, Russian |
| 16 | Belgium | Dutch, French, German |
| 17 | Belize | English |
| 18 | Benin | French |
| 19 | Bhutan | Dzongkha |
| 20 | Bolivia | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara and others |
| 21 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian |
| 22 | Botswana | English, Tswana |
| 23 | Brazil | Portuguese |
| 24 | Brunei | Malay |
| 25 | Bulgaria | Bulgarian |
| 26 | Burkina Faso | French |
| 27 | Burundi | Kirundi, French, English |
| 28 | Cabo Verde | Portuguese |
| 29 | Cambodia | Khmer |
| 30 | Cameroon | French, English |
| 31 | Canada | English, French |
| 32 | Central African Republic | French, Sango |
| 33 | Chad | French, Arabic |
| 34 | Chile | Spanish |
| 35 | China | Mandarin |
| 36 | Colombia | Spanish |
| 37 | Comoros | Comorian, Arabic, French |
| 38 | Congo (Brazzaville) | French |
| 39 | Congo (Kinshasa) | French |
| 40 | Costa Rica | Spanish |
| 41 | Croatia | Croatian |
| 42 | Cuba | Spanish |
| 43 | Cyprus | Greek, Turkish |
| 44 | Czech Republic | Czech |
| 45 | Denmark | Danish |
| 46 | Djibouti | French, Arabic |
| 47 | Dominica | English |
| 48 | Dominican Republic | Spanish |
| 49 | East Timor (Timor-Leste) | Portuguese, Tetum |
| 50 | Ecuador | Spanish |
| 51 | Egypt | Arabic |
| 52 | El Salvador | Spanish |
| 53 | Equatorial Guinea | Spanish, French, Portuguese |
| 54 | Eritrea | Tigrinya, Arabic, English |
| 55 | Estonia | Estonian |
| 56 | Eswatini | Swazi, English |
| 57 | Ethiopia | Amharic |
| 58 | Fiji | English, Fijian, Fiji Hindi |
| 59 | Finland | Finnish, Swedish |
| 60 | France | French |
| 61 | Gabon | French |
| 62 | Gambia | English |
| 63 | Georgia | Georgian |
| 64 | Germany | German |
| 65 | Ghana | English |
| 66 | Greece | Greek |
| 67 | Grenada | English |
| 68 | Guatemala | Spanish |
| 69 | Guinea | French |
| 70 | Guinea-Bissau | Portuguese |
| 71 | Guyana | English |
| 72 | Haiti | French, Haitian Creole |
| 73 | Honduras | Spanish |
| 74 | Hungary | Hungarian |
| 75 | Iceland | Icelandic |
| 76 | India | Hindi, English (and 21 other scheduled languages) |
| 77 | Indonesia | Indonesian |
| 78 | Iran | Persian (Farsi) |
| 79 | Iraq | Arabic, Kurdish |
| 80 | Ireland | Irish, English |
| 81 | Israel | Hebrew, Arabic |
| 82 | Italy | Italian |
| 83 | Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) | French |
| 84 | Jamaica | English |
| 85 | Japan | Japanese |
| 86 | Jordan | Arabic |
| 87 | Kazakhstan | Kazakh, Russian |
| 88 | Kenya | English, Swahili |
| 89 | Kiribati | English |
| 90 | Kuwait | Arabic |
| 91 | Kyrgyzstan | Kyrgyz, Russian |
| 92 | Laos | Lao |
| 93 | Latvia | Latvian |
| 94 | Lebanon | Arabic |
| 95 | Lesotho | Sesotho, English |
| 96 | Liberia | English |
| 97 | Libya | Arabic |
| 98 | Liechtenstein | German |
| 99 | Lithuania | Lithuanian |
| 100 | Luxembourg | Luxembourgish, French, German |
List of countries and their official languages (Countries 101–195) table
List of Countries and Their Official Languages (101–195)
| S/N | Country | Official Language(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | Madagascar | Malagasy, French |
| 102 | Malawi | English, Chichewa |
| 103 | Malaysia | Malay |
| 104 | Maldives | Dhivehi |
| 105 | Mali | French |
| 106 | Malta | Maltese, English |
| 107 | Marshall Islands | Marshallese, English |
| 108 | Mauritania | Arabic |
| 109 | Mauritius | English |
| 110 | Mexico | Spanish |
| 111 | Micronesia | English |
| 112 | Moldova | Romanian |
| 113 | Monaco | French |
| 114 | Mongolia | Mongolian |
| 115 | Montenegro | Montenegrin |
| 116 | Morocco | Arabic, Berber |
| 117 | Mozambique | Portuguese |
| 118 | Myanmar (Burma) | Burmese |
| 119 | Namibia | English |
| 120 | Nauru | Nauruan, English |
| 121 | Nepal | Nepali |
| 122 | Netherlands | Dutch |
| 123 | New Zealand | English, Māori, NZ Sign Language |
| 124 | Nicaragua | Spanish |
| 125 | Niger | French |
| 126 | Nigeria | English |
| 127 | North Korea | Korean |
| 128 | North Macedonia | Macedonian, Albanian |
| 129 | Norway | Norwegian |
| 130 | Oman | Arabic |
| 131 | Pakistan | Urdu, English |
| 132 | Palau | Palauan, English |
| 133 | Palestine | Arabic |
| 134 | Panama | Spanish |
| 135 | Papua New Guinea | English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu |
| 136 | Paraguay | Spanish, Guarani |
| 137 | Peru | Spanish, Quechua, Aymara |
| 138 | Philippines | Filipino, English |
| 139 | Poland | Polish |
| 140 | Portugal | Portuguese |
| 141 | Qatar | Arabic |
| 142 | Romania | Romanian |
| 143 | Russia | Russian |
| 144 | Rwanda | Kinyarwanda, French, English |
| 145 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | English |
| 146 | Saint Lucia | English |
| 147 | Saint Vincent & Grenadines | English |
| 148 | Samoa | Samoan, English |
| 149 | San Marino | Italian |
| 150 | Sao Tome and Principe | Portuguese |
| 151 | Saudi Arabia | Arabic |
| 152 | Senegal | French |
| 153 | Serbia | Serbian |
| 154 | Seychelles | Seychellois Creole, English, French |
| 155 | Sierra Leone | English |
| 156 | Singapore | English, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil |
| 157 | Slovakia | Slovak |
| 158 | Slovenia | Slovene |
| 159 | Solomon Islands | English |
| 160 | Somalia | Somali, Arabic |
| 161 | South Africa | 11 official languages including English, Zulu, Afrikaans |
| 162 | South Korea | Korean |
| 163 | South Sudan | English |
| 164 | Spain | Spanish |
| 165 | Sri Lanka | Sinhala, Tamil |
| 166 | Sudan | Arabic, English |
| 167 | Suriname | Dutch |
| 168 | Sweden | Swedish |
| 169 | Switzerland | German, French, Italian, Romansh |
| 170 | Syria | Arabic |
| 171 | Taiwan | Mandarin |
| 172 | Tajikistan | Tajik |
| 173 | Tanzania | Swahili, English |
| 174 | Thailand | Thai |
| 175 | Togo | French |
| 176 | Tonga | Tongan, English |
| 177 | Trinidad and Tobago | English |
| 178 | Tunisia | Arabic |
| 179 | Turkey | Turkish |
| 180 | Turkmenistan | Turkmen |
| 181 | Tuvalu | Tuvaluan, English |
| 182 | Uganda | English, Swahili |
| 183 | Ukraine | Ukrainian |
| 184 | United Arab Emirates | Arabic |
| 185 | United Kingdom | English |
| 186 | United States | English (de facto) |
| 187 | Uruguay | Spanish |
| 188 | Uzbekistan | Uzbek |
| 189 | Vanuatu | Bislama, English, French |
| 190 | Vatican City | Latin, Italian |
| 191 | Venezuela | Spanish |
| 192 | Vietnam | Vietnamese |
| 193 | Yemen | Arabic |
| 194 | Zambia | English |
| 195 | Zimbabwe | 16 official languages including English, Shona, Ndebele |
Countries with Multiple Official Languages
Several countries have embraced linguistic diversity by recognizing more than one official language. Examples include:
| Country | Number of Official Languages | Languages |
|---|---|---|
| South Africa | 11 | English, Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans, others |
| Canada | 2 | English, French |
| Switzerland | 4 | German, French, Italian, Romansh |
| India | 2 (national) + 22 scheduled | Hindi, English, and others |
| Bolivia | 37 | Spanish + Indigenous languages |
READ ALSO | List of Spanish Speaking Countries in the world
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Revision Questions and Answers
Objective Questions
- What is the official language of Brazil?
Answer: Portuguese - Which country has 11 official languages including Afrikaans and Zulu?
Answer: South Africa - Name two official languages of Canada.
Answer: English and French - Which is the official language of China?
Answer: Mandarin - How many official languages does Bolivia recognize?
Answer: 37
Theory Questions
- Define the term “official language” and explain its importance in governance.
- List and explain five countries with more than one official language.
- Discuss the linguistic diversity of Africa and how it affects national unity.
- Compare the language policies of India and the United States.
- Explain three roles of official languages in education and diplomacy.