The value of Spanish as the vehicle of communication in the world: present and future in a growing language

Abstract

In this paper, we intend to address the causes that explain the value Spanish language has in the world today. A value linked to the number of its speakers, to an ancient culture and to an increasingly strong economic importance that makes studying Spanish as a second language a future investment for those who decide to learn it. This reflection is part of the research program framework “Africa con eñe”, carried on by the “Unesco Chair in Communication Research and Africa”, from the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain, and by the “Fundación Mujeres por África”, with the aim of promoting the use of Spanish as a development instrument for Africa and, specially, African women. The project includes different lines of work, among them, the intention to incorporate Spanish language as part of the elective courses offered in academic programs at primary and secondary schools in various African countries, that´s why it seems necessary to show all demographic, cultural, geographic, economic and political elements that make Spanish one of the main languages at present and future in the world. This project is justified by the need to promote a language as important as Spanish –which occupies the second place in the international ranking of languages in terms of number of inhabitants, after Chinese and, for the first time, ahead of English– in a continent where it barely has a presence; Spanish is the official language only in Equatorial Guinea.