Mandarin Chinese is the most commonly spoken language around the world, with over 955 million speakers. It is one of six official languages in the United Nations along with Arabic, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. Mandarin is one of many Chinese dialects, and is largely spoken in China, Taiwan, and Singapore. In 1932 the Mandarin dialect, from the area of Beijing, was selected by Chinese officials in order to create a standard national language. While Mandarin is now the common language of China and taught in schools across the world, many Chinese continue to speak in their regional dialects.
More about languages:
- The US does not have an official language.
- The Bible is the most translated book, being translated into over 2,000 languages.
- Around 2,500 languages have been identified by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as being in danger of vanishing.