After Asia, Africa is the most populous and continent in the world with a population of over 1.2 billion. Therefore, it is no surprise that it has various languages being spoken. The continent has an estimate of over 2,000 native languages. The following are the top 5 most spoken language in Africa;
Swahili
Swahili is an indigenous Bantu language that is spoken by over 150 million Africans in East, Central, and parts of Southern Africa. Additionally, the language is official in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Burundi.
Arabic
Arabic is spoken by over 100 million Africans making it one of the top languages in the continent. This language is mostly used in North and West Africa.
It is an official language in the following countries; Chad, Algeria, Mauritania, Egypt, Comoros, Libya and Morocco. Even though Arabic is considered to be among the most spoken languages in the world, about 62% of its speakers are found in Africa.
French
French is rooted in Africa because of colonization by the French. It is mostly spoken in West Africa. Interestingly, there are more French speakers in Africa than anywhere else in the world. More than 26 African countries use the language with a total of 90 million speakers.
The language is used in Guinea, Seychelles, ivory Coast, Gabon, Senegal, and many more.
Hausa
Hausa is spoken by over 50 million Africans as the first language. It is spoken in Nigeria, Chad, Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo, Ghana, and Cameroon. The language is rich in the literature it posses and this has seen it been studied extensively in international universities.
Yoruba
Yoruba has over 30 million speakers many of them being in Nigeria. Other countries that use it include Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Benin, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.
Other spoken languages in Africa include; English, Oromo, Igbo, Amharic, Zulu, and Shona.
