Learn How to Speak Spanish

June 16th, 2008 Posted in Learn Spanish

Spanish, also known as español or Castilian is a Romance language that originated in northern Spain, and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile and evolved into the principal language of government and trade. It was taken to Africa, the Americas, and Asia Pacific when the Spanish Empire was established between the 15th and 19th centuries.

Now, it is the official language of Spain, most Latin American countries, and Equatorial Guinea; 21 nations speak it as their primary language. It is also is one of six official languages of the United Nations.

Mexico has the world’s largest Spanish-speaking population, and according to many sources, Spanish is the second most-widely spoken language in the United States and the most popular studied foreign language in U.S. schools and universities.

Global internet usage statistics for 2007 show that Spanish is the third most commonly used language on the internet, after English and Chinese. Also, the language has been described as the third most influential language in the world.

There are many incentives to learn how to speak Spanish. Among them are:

1.    Enhanced knowledge of English
2.    Communicating effectively with the vast Spanish-speaking community
3.    Cultural Understanding
4.    Better travel experiences in countries with Spanish as the common language
5.    Boosting self confidence

Learn How to Speak Spanish

According to many sources, learning how to speak Spanish is much easier than learning French and other such languages because it is widely hailed as a simple language with comprehendible grammar which does not leave the student all confused. To learn how to speak Spanish is a great way to bring improvements in one’s life and start feeling more confident.

Probably the best way to start learning how to speak Spanish is by recognize Spanish words that have the same Latin roots as their English cousins. Consider the following example:

English –> Spanish
Plastic –> Plástico
Traffic –> Tráfico
Tropico –> Trópico
Allergic –> Alérgico

All the words have the alphabets ‘I’ and ‘c’ common. It is pertinent to mention here that there are 253 really useful words in the same category and the key is to identify them correctly to enable you to start making conversation in Spanish.

Consider another example:

English –> Spanish
Reservation –> Reservación
Cancellation –> Cancelación
Celebration –> Celebración
Communication –> Comunicación
Conversation –> Conversación

The rule here is to identify the English words that end with ‘tion’ that can be made into Spanish by changing ‘tion’ to CIÓN.

Therefore, learning how to speak Spanish is not difficult provided that you have the correct resources and the right motivation. Remember, Spanish is only difficult to learn if you don’t want to.

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