The obvious answer to this question is that Americans speak English. However, in America, we speak a dialect of the original English, called American English. That being said British English is a dialect too, even though its considered an original dialect. The English language spoken in various parts of the US varies. The differences are small even when compared to British English. For instance, ‘soda’ refers to a carbonated beverage.
At the heart of the language is still the core English dialect despite the fact that certain parts of the vocabulary vary very slightly. A native English speaker can read a book in American, British or Australian English without having to put in much effort. However, many communities speak a second language in addition to English. That’s in addition to immigrants that speak English as a second language.
America is as diverse as the languages spoken
The Census Bureau has tracked the various second languages spoken by people across the United States. The data collected suggests that 58% of Americans of age 5 and up, speak good English, as well as a second language at home. Two-thirds of these people who speak another language at home are Spanish speakers making up 37.6 million inhabitants. Chinese is the third most spoken language with 2.9 million speakers. Tagalog has 1.6 million speakers, Vietnamese speakers make up 1.4 million of the population followed by, French 1.3 million, and Korean 1.1 million.
44% of California residents speak a second language. Making it the state with the highest concentration of people who speak a second language at home. The lowest number is in West Virginia at just 2%. The highest concentration is in Laredo, Texas’ metro area accounting for 92%.
Native American Languages
Discussion about the languages spoken in America would be incomplete without mentioning the oldest language spoken on the continent. Smaller pockets of America speak native American languages, and the populations speaking these languages are on the decline. Usually, native languages are spoken within reservations.
In Hawaii, the native official language is still Hawaiian along with English. It is despite the fact that very few people on the island still speak the oldest native language. The state of Louisiana offers its documents and services in French, while in New Mexico it’s in Spanish. That said apart from English, Spanish, French, German, Navajo and Native American languages, all the other languages have been learned from recent immigrant ancestors who came post-independence.
Evolution of American English
American English and English, in general, is still evolving. The internet, coupled with recent social and political changes have meant that the language continues to evolve. New words are added each year to the Oxford American English Dictionary. Plus, with a growing number of people communicating in English across international borders, the English dialects are ever more diverse than they were. So, it stands to reason that despite the rise of other languages such as Chinese and Spanish, English will continue to be the dominant language of America for the foreseeable future.