This article details the geographical distribution of speakers of the Italian language, regardless of the legislative status within the countries where it is spoken. In addition to the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

-speaking area in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, Italian-speaking

minorities The term "minority group" has different meanings, depending on the context. According to common usage, it can be defined simply as a group in society with the least number of individuals, or less than half of a population. Usually a minority g ...

are present in few countries. More than 67 million people in the world speak Italian as their first language and more than 80 million has it as either their first or second language.

Statistics

Native speakers by country

The following table presents estimates of the number of people worldwide who speak Italian as their first language (mother tongue). The data are derived from a variety of sources, including national censuses, official surveys conducted by statistical agencies, and independent studies or estimates. Where sources do not account for the entire population (for example, by excluding children or focusing on specific age groups) estimates are projected to the total population. Since definitions vary across sources, the table includes the specific criteria used in each case (for example mother tongue or language spoken at home) for a better interpretation of the figures.

Subnational territories

In the following territories,

is an official language. Apart from

Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...

, Italian is official alongside at least another language, such as

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, Slovene, Croatian, Ladin and Romansh.

Unspecified

Total speakers by country

Europe

Italian is an official language of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

and

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Italian is also used in administration and official documents in

Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...

. In central-east Europe Italian is first in Montenegro, second in Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, and Ukraine after English, and third in Hungary, Romania and Russia after English and German. But throughout the world, Italian is the fifth most taught foreign language, after English, French, German, and Spanish. In the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

statistics, Italian is spoken as a native language by 13% of the EU population, or 65 million people, , February 2006 mainly in Italy. In the EU, it is spoken as a second language by 3% of the EU population, or 14 million people. Among EU states, the percentage of people able to speak Italian well enough to have a conversation is 66% in

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, 15% in

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

, 14% in

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

, 8% in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, 5% in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, and 4% in the former

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

Albania

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

, Italian is one of the most spoken languages. This is due to the strong historical ties between

and Albania but also the Albanian communities in Italy, and the 19,000

Italians Italians (, ) are a European peoples, European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common Italian culture, culture, History of Italy, history, Cultural heritage, ancestry and Italian language, language. ...

living in Albania. It is reported that as much as 70% of the Albanian adult population has some knowledge of Italian. Furthermore, the Albanian government has pushed to make Italian a compulsory second language in schools. Today, Italian is the third most spoken language in the country after

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

and

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

. The Italian language is well known and studied in Albania, another non-EU member, due to its historical ties and geographical proximity to Italy and to the broadcasting of Italian television in the country.

Croatia, Slovenia and Montenegro

Italian formerly had official status in

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

(because of the

Venetian Albania Venetian Albania (, , , , ) was the official term for several possessions of the Republic of Venice in the southeastern Adriatic, encompassing coastal territories primarily in present-day southern Montenegro and partially in northern Albania. Se ...

), and in parts of

and

(because of the

Venetian Istria Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetians might refer to: * Masters of Venetian painting in 15th-16th centuries * ...

and

Venetian Dalmatia Venetian Dalmatia () refers to the territories of Dalmatia under the rule of the Republic of Venice, mainly from the 15th to the 18th centuries. Dalmatia was first sold to Venice in 1409 but Venetian Dalmatia was not fully consolidated until 1420, ...

Italian language in Slovenia The Italian language is an officially recognized minority language in Slovenia, along with Hungarian. Around 3,700 Slovenian citizens speak Italian as their mother tongue, mostly Istrian Italians. Their numbers drastically decreased following th ...

is an officially recognized

minority language A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a territory. Such people are termed linguistic minorities or language minorities. With a total number of 196 sovereign states recognized internationally (as of 2019) and ...

in the country. The official census, carried out in 2002, reported 2,258 ethnic Italians (

Istrian Italians Istrian Italians (; ; ) are an ethnic group from the Adriatic region of Istria in modern northwestern Croatia and southwestern Slovenia. Istrian Italians descend from the original Latinized population of Roman Histria, from the Venetian-speaki ...

) in

(0.11% of the total population).

Italian language in Croatia The Italian language is an official minority language in Croatia, with many schools and public announcements published in both languages. Croatia's proximity and cultural connections to Italy have led to a relatively large presence of Italians i ...

is an official minority language in the country, with many schools and public announcements published in both languages. The 2001 census in

reported 19,636 ethnic Italians (Istrian Italians and

Dalmatian Italians Dalmatian Italians (; ) are the historical Italian national minority living in the region of Dalmatia, now part of Croatia and Montenegro. Historically, Italian language-speaking Dalmatians accounted for 12.5% of population in 1865, 5.8% in 18 ...

) in the country (some 0.42% of the total population). Their numbers dropped dramatically after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

following the

Istrian–Dalmatian exodus The Istrian–Dalmatian exodus (; ; ) was the post-World War II exodus and departure of local ethnic Italians (Istrian Italians and Dalmatian Italians) as well as ethnic Slovenes and Croats from Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugosla ...

, which caused the emigration of between 230,000 and 350,000 Istrian Italians and Dalmatian Italians. Italian was the official language of the

Republic of Ragusa The Republic of Ragusa, or the Republic of Dubrovnik, was an maritime republics, aristocratic maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik (''Ragusa'' in Italian and Latin; ''Raguxa'' in Venetian) in South Dalmatia (today in southernmost ...

from 1492 to 1807.

France and Monaco

Italian is also spoken by a minority in

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

and

, especially in the southeastern part of the country. Italian was the official language in

Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...

and in

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionTreaty of Turin, a development that triggered the " Niçard exodus", or the emigration of a quarter of the

Niçard Italians Niçard Italians ( ) are Italians who have full or partial County of Nice, Nice heritage by birth or ethnicity. History Niçard Italians have roots in Nice and the County of Nice. They often speak the Ligurian language after Nice joined the Genoa ...

to Italy, and the Niçard Vespers.

Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...

complained about the referendum that allowed France to annex Savoy and Nice, and a group of his followers (among the Italian Savoyards) took refuge in Italy in the following years.

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

passed from the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...

to France in 1769 after the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

. Italian was the official language of

until 1859. Giuseppe Garibaldi called for the inclusion of the "

Corsican Italians Italian irredentism in Corsica was a cultural and historical movement promoted by Italians and by people from Corsica who identified themselves as part of Italy rather than France, and promoted the Italian annexation of the island. History Cors ...

" within Italy when Rome was annexed to the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

, but King

Victor Emmanuel II Victor Emmanuel II (; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia (also informally known as Piedmont–Sardinia) from 23 March 1849 until 17 March ...

did not agree to it. Today it is estimated that only 10% of Corsica's population speak the language natively, with 50% having some sort of proficiency in it. Italian is generally understood in Corsica by the population resident therein who speak Corsican, which is an Italo-Romance idiom similar to Tuscan.

Francization Francization (in American English, Canadian English, and Oxford English) or Francisation (in other British English), also known as Frenchification, is the expansion of French language use—either through willful adoption or coercion—by more an ...

occurred in Nice and Corsica cases, and caused a near-disappearance of the Italian language as many of the Italian speakers in these areas migrated to Italy. Ligurian is recognized as a regional language in the French department of the

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; ; ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the France–Italy border, Italian border and Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'A ...

, furthermore, there is an autochthonous Italian population dating from the Savoyard

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

, which controlled the area until 1860, the year the Treaty of Turin entered into force, regardless the more recent Italian immigrants of the twentieth century. Italian was the official language in

until 1860, when it was replaced by the French. This was due to the annexation of the surrounding

County of Nice The County of Nice (; ; Niçard ) was a historical region of France and Italy located around the southeastern city of Nice and roughly equivalent to the modern arrondissement of Nice. It was part of the Savoyard state within the Holy Roman Emp ...

to France following the

Treaty of Turin (1860) The Treaty of Turin (; ) concluded between France and Kingdom of Sardinia, Piedmont-Sardinia on 24 March 1860 is the instrument by which the Duchy of Savoy and the County of Nice were annexed to France, ending the centuries-old Italian rule of th ...

Greece

Italian formerly had official status in parts of

(because of the

Venetian rule in the Ionian Islands The Ionian Islands were an overseas possession of the Republic of Venice from the mid-14th century until the late 18th century. The conquest of the islands took place gradually. The first to be acquired was Cythera and the neighboring islet o ...

and by the Kingdom of Italy in the Dodecanese).

Malta

Italian is widely spoken in

, where nearly two-thirds of the population can speak it fluently (see

Maltese Italian Maltese Italian is the Italian language spoken in Malta. It has received some influences from the Maltese language. History For many centuries since the Middle Ages and until 1934, Italian was the official language of Malta. Indeed, it had bee ...

). Italian served as Malta's official language until 1934, when it was abolished by the British colonial administration amid strong local opposition.

Switzerland

Italian is official, together with French, German and Romansch, in

, with most of the 0.7 million speakers concentrated in the south of the country, in the cantons of

and southern

Grisons The Grisons (; ) or Graubünden (),Names include: * ; *Romansh language, Romansh: ** ** ** ** ** **; * ; * ; * . See also list of European regions with alternative names#G, other names. more formally the Canton of the Grisons or the Canton ...

(predominately in

Italian Grisons Italian Grisons or Italian Grigioni ( or ; ; ; French: ''Grisons italiens'') or sometimes also called Lombard Grisons (; ), is the region of the Canton of Grisons, Switzerland, in which Italian is the dominant language. Located in the souther ...

). Italian is the third most spoken language in Switzerland (after German and French), but its use has slightly declined since the 1970s.

Africa

Due to heavy Italian influence during the Italian colonial period, Italian is still understood by some in former colonies.Ethnologue report for language code:ita (Italy)
– Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (ed.), 2005. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Fifteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International. Online version Outside former colonies, Italian is also understood and spoken in

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

by a small part of the population.

Eritrea

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

, Italian is at times used in commerce and the capital city

Asmara Asmara ( ), or Asmera (), is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region (Eritrea), Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the List of capital cities by altitude, sixth highest capital in the wo ...

still has one Italian-language school. The official language of Eritrea,

Tigrinya Tigrinya may refer to: * Tigrinya language Tigrinya, sometimes romanized as Tigrigna, is an Ethio-Semitic languages, Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic languages, Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It i ...

, has a number of words borrowed from Italian.

Libya

Although it was the primary language in

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

since

colonial rule Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an imperialist project, colonialism can also take ...

, Italian greatly declined under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi, who expelled the Italian Libyan population and made

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

the sole official language of the country. Nevertheless, Italian continues to be used in economic sectors in Libya, and today it is the most spoken second language in the country.

Somalia

Italian was also introduced to

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

through colonialism and was the sole official language of administration and education during the colonial period but fell out of use after government, educational and economic infrastructure were destroyed in the

Somali Civil War The Somali Civil War (; ) is an List of ongoing armed conflicts, ongoing civil war that is taking place in Somalia. It grew out of resistance to the military junta which was led by Siad Barre during the 1980s. From 1988 to 1990, the Somali Armed ...

. Italian is still understood by some elderly and other people. The official languages of the Somali Republic are Somali (Maay and Maxaatiri) and Arabic. The working languages during the Transitional Federal Government were Italian and English.

Ethiopia

Italian is still spoken by few parts of the Ethiopian population (mostly among older generations) despite the brief period under Italian rule when compared with the other colonies, and it is taught in many schools (most notably the

Istituto Statale Italiano Omnicomprensivo di Addis Abeba Istituto Statale Italiano Omnicomprensivo di Addis Abeba or the Scuola Statale Italiana di Addis Abeba is an Italian governmental international school along Belay Zeleke Street in Arada, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, Italian is the second most spoken non-official language when

varieties of Chinese There are hundreds of local Chinese language varieties forming a branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages, Sino-Tibetan language family, many of which are not Mutual intelligibility, mutually intelligible. Variation is particularly strong in the m ...

are not grouped together, with over 660,000 speakers (or about 2.1% of the population) according to the 2006 Census.

Costa Rica

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, Italian is one of the most important immigration community languages, after

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

. It is spoken in the southern area of the country in cities like

San Vito San Vito may refer to: Persons *Saint Vitus, saint, origin of all San Vito names Places Settlements in Italy * Bagnolo San Vito, province of Mantua * Celle di San Vito, province of Foggia *Monte San Vito, province of Ancona * San Vito, Sardinia ...

and other communities of Coto Brus, near the south borderline with

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

South America

Italian immigrants to

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

have also brought a presence of the language to that continent. In

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

about 63% of the population has Italian ancestry, and Italian is the second most spoken language after the official language of Spanish, with over 1 million (mainly of the older generation) speaking it at home. Italian has also significantly influenced the dialect of Spanish spoken in Argentina and

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

, mostly in phonology and vocabulary, known as

Rioplatense Spanish Rioplatense Spanish ( , ), also known as Rioplatense Castilian, or River Plate Spanish, is a variety of SpanishAlvar, Manuel, "''Manual de dialectología hispánica. El español de América''", ("Handbook of Hispanic Dialectology. Spanish Lan ...

. Its impact can also be seen in the Portuguese prosody of the Brazilian state of

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, which itself has 15 million Italian descendants. Italian bilingual speakers can be found in the Southeast of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

as well as in the South. In

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

, Italian is the most spoken language after Spanish and Portuguese, with around 200,000 speakers. Smaller Italian-speaking minorities on the continent are also found in

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

and

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. Also, variants of regional languages of Italy are used. Examples include the

Talian dialect Talian (, ), or Brazilian Venetian, or Vêneto is a Venetian dialect spoken primarily in the Serra Gaúcha region in the northeast of the state of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, as well as in other parts of Rio Grande do Sul, and in parts of Esp� ...

in Brazil, where it is officially a historic patrimony of

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, ; ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative units of Brazil#List, fifth-most populous state and the List of Brazilian s ...

; the

Chipilo Venetian dialect Chipilo Venetian (Venetan) or Chipileño, is a diaspora language and linguistic variant of Venetan, a Romance language belonging to the Western Romance group and native to the Veneto region of Northern Italy, spoken in Chipilo, a town in th ...

in Mexico; and

Cocoliche Cocoliche is an Italian language, Italian–Spanish language, Spanish Macaronic language, contact language or pidgin that was spoken by Italian settlement in Argentina, Italian immigrants between 1870 and 1970 in Argentina (especially in Gran Bu ...

and

Lunfardo Lunfardo (; from the Italian ) is an argot originated and developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the lower classes in the Río de la Plata region (encompassing the port cities of Buenos Aires in Argentina and Montevideo in Uruguay) ...

in Argentina, especially in Buenos Aires.

United States

Although over 17 million Americans are of Italian descent, only around 709,000 people in the United States spoke Italian at home in 2013. Nevertheless, an Italian language media market does exist in the country. On the other hand, although technology allows for the Italian language to spread globally, there has been a decrease in the number of Italian speakers in the home in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of those speaking Italian at home in 1980 was 1,614,344. In 1990, those speaking Italian at home in the United States had dropped to 1,308,648. In 2000, the number of speakers decreased to 1,008,370, and finally, in 2010, it had plummeted to 725,223. The percent change from 1980 to 2010 was a negative 55.2. In the United States, Italian is the fourth most taught foreign language after Spanish, French, and German, in that order (or the fifth if

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...

is considered).

Australia

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, Italian is the second most spoken foreign language after Chinese, with 1.4% of the population speaking it as their home language. The Italo-Australian dialect came into note in the 1970s by Italian linguist Tullio De Mauro.

Notes

References

{{Geographical distribution of languages Italian distribution

Distribution