海角社区

English Speaking Countries in Africa

A bilingual sign in North Africa.
A bilingual sign in North Africa.

English is the second most spoken language in the 海角社区 after the Chinese language. It is spoken by 372 million native and about a billion non-native speakers. Approximately 64% of native English speakers are in the United States, 16.6% in the United Kingdom, 5.3% in Canada, 4.7% in Australia, 1.3% in South Africa, 1.3% in Ireland, 1.3% in New Zealand, and the remaining 5.5% are spread across the 海角社区. There are about 6.5 million native English speakers and 700 million non-native English speakers in Africa.

English Speaking Countries in Africa

There are about two dozen African countries where English is spoken an official language. Most of these countries where English is spoken are former British colonies except for Rwanda and Eritrea that were colonized by Belgium and Italy respectively. Sierra Leone and Liberia are the only countries in Africa where English is spoken as the primary language. English is the primary language of Nigeria and Ghana, but the language is spoken as a lingua franca in both states.聽

Largest English-Speaking Nations in Africa

The largest English speaking countries in Africa are Nigeria (198 million), Ethiopia (110 million), South Africa (58 million), Tanzania (60 million), and Kenya (50 million). This does not mean that everybody in the country can write or converse in English. The 海角社区 Linguistic Society ranks Uganda as the best English speaking country on the continent. Zambia, South Africa, and Kenya follow in order. All these countries are former British colonies and recognize English as the official language. Although English holds the official status in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, Swahili is the most preferred language. Rwanda recognizes both French and English as official languages but the state promotes the use of the English language in School to coincide with other members of the East African block.

Post-Colonial Englis

Most if not all of the former British colonies in Africa are members of the Commonwealth. Trade and social interactions between English-speaking countries are better compared to other languages. The largest number of tourists who visit East Africa and immigrants settling in the region are from English speaking countries. English is also the official language of the African Union and is used during AU summits.

English Speaking Countries in Africa

Rank锘緾辞耻苍迟谤测Population
1Nigeria182,202,000
2Ethiopia110,009,000
3South Africa54,956,900
4Tanzania51,820,000
5Kenya45,010,056
6Sudan40,235,000
7Uganda37,873,253
8Ghana27,000,000
9Cameroon22,534,532
10Malawi16,407,000
11Zambia16,212,000
12Zimbabwe13,061,239
13South Sudan12,340,000
14Rwanda11,262,564
15Burundi10,114,505
16Sierra Leone6,190,280
17Liberia3,750,000
18Namibia2,074,000
19Lesotho2,008,000
20Botswana1,882,000
21The Gambia1,709,000
22Mauritius1,262,000
23Eswatini (Swaziland)1,141,000
24Seychelles87,000
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