In this series of articles we overview languages present in any given country. This time we are looking at the languages spoken in Australia
The biggest languages present in Australia include:
- English
- Chinese
- Arabic
- Vietnamese
- Italian
- Greek
There is no official languages in Australia, although some languages may have a functionally similar status, or be official in some of the administrative divisions of the country.
Below you will find summaries for the languages supported by our translation services.
English
English belongs to the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 1.15 billion |
|---|---|
| Language family | Indo-European |
| Writing | English alphabet |
| Major English-speaking populations in: | 35 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
There are major English-speaking populations in more than 30 countries of the world. With regard to the number of speakers, the most notable 3 countries are United Kingdom, United States, and New Zealand.
In Australia approximately 78% or 19.89 million people use English in their day-to-day communication.
Writing
English uses the Latin alphabet. It employs the standard version of the script with no additional, language-specific symbols. It is written from left to right.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the English language, you might be interested in the following services:
Chinese
Chinese is a Sino-Tibetan language, distantly related to as well as a number of other languages. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 1.20 billion |
|---|---|
| Language family | Sino-Tibetan |
| Writing | Hanzi logograms |
| Major Chinese-speaking populations in: | 6 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
Chinese is spoken by around 1.20 billion people around the world. Taiwanese, Singaporean, and Hong Kong markets, for example, might be expected to use Chinese in business and daily communications, at least to some extent.
Less than a quarter of the population speaks Chinese in Australia, 765 thousand people in total.
Writing
Chinese uses the Chinese character logograms. It employs the standard version of the script with no additional, language-specific symbols. It is written from left to right or top to bottom to left.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the Chinese language, you might be interested in the following services:
- Chinese Document Translation
- Chinese Desktop Publishing and InDesign Translation
- Chinese E-Commerce Translation
Arabic
Arabic is a Semitic language, closely related to Maltese, Hebrew, and other languages of the same branch of the language family. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 422 million |
|---|---|
| Language family | Afro-Asiatic |
| Writing | Arabic abjad |
| Major Arabic-speaking populations in: | 22 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
Approximately 422 million people in more than 22 countries speak Arabic as either the first or a second language. Examples of countries, where Arabic has a major presence, include:
- Egypt
- Kuwait
- Jordan
- Somalia
In Australia approximately 1% or 255 thousand people use Arabic in their day-to-day communication.
Writing
Arabic uses the Arabic abjad. It employs the standard version of the script with no additional, language-specific symbols. It is written from right to left.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the Arabic language, you might be interested in the following services:
- Arabic Document Translation
- Arabic Desktop Publishing and InDesign Translation
- Arabic E-Commerce Translation
Vietnamese
Vietnamese is a Vietic language spoken by 84.80 million people both in Australia and abroad. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 84.80 million |
|---|---|
| Language family | Austroasiatic |
| Writing | Vietnamese alphabet |
| Major Vietnamese-speaking populations in: | 4 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
Approximately 84.80 million people in more than 4 countries speak Vietnamese as either the first or a second language. Countries with a significant number of people speaking the language include:
- Vietnam
- Laos
- United States
- Cambodia
Less than a quarter of the population speaks Vietnamese in Australia, 255 thousand people in total.
Writing
The Vietnamese alphabet is used for writing the Vietnamese language. Being a subset of the Vietnamese script, it uses some non-standard characters like à, á, â, ầ, overall 67 symbols.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the Vietnamese language, you might be interested in the following services:
- Vietnamese Document Translation
- Vietnamese Desktop Publishing and InDesign Translation
- Vietnamese E-Commerce Translation
Italian
Italian is a Romance language, closely related to Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian, French, and other languages of the same branch of the language family. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 85 million |
|---|---|
| Language family | Indo-European |
| Writing | Italian alphabet |
| Major Italian-speaking populations in: | 9 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
More than ten million people use Italian as their language of day-to-day communication. With regard to the number of speakers, the most notable 3 countries are Italy, Malta, and San Marino.
Less than a quarter of the population speaks Italian in Australia, 255 thousand people in total.
Writing
The Italian alphabet is used for writing the Italian language. Being a subset of the Italian script, it uses some non-standard characters like à, è, é, ì, overall 7 symbols.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the Italian language, you might be interested in the following services:
- Italian Document Translation
- Italian Desktop Publishing and InDesign Translation
- Italian E-Commerce Translation
Greek
Greek is a Hellenic language spoken by 13.40 million people both in Australia and abroad. It has no country-wide official status in Australia.
| Number of speakers worldwide | 13.40 million |
|---|---|
| Language family | Indo-European |
| Writing | Greek alphabet |
| Major Greek-speaking populations in: | 4 countries |
Demographics and geographic distribution
There are major Greek-speaking populations in 4 countries. Georgian, Albanian, and Greek markets, for example, might be expected to use Greek in business and daily communications, at least to some extent.
More than 255 thousand residents of Australia understand Greek.
Writing
Greek uses the Greek alphabet. It employs the standard version of the script with no additional, language-specific symbols. It is written from left to right.
Translation services
If you intend to expand to the Australian market via the Greek language, you might be interested in the following services:
- Greek Document Translation
- Greek Desktop Publishing and InDesign Translation
- Greek E-Commerce Translation
Related services
We hope you have found the answers to the question “What languages are spoken in Australia“. If you wish to know more about these languages or would like to inquire about our translation services, please contact us at [email protected].
