Interest in German as a foreign language remains at a very high level. The latest Deutsch als Fremdsprache weltweit (German as a foreign language worldwide) survey puts the number of German language students worldwide at 15.4 million.
The language is becoming particularly popular in South America, notably Brazil, the Middle East and, above all, China and India. In Brazil, 134,000 people are learning German, in China 117,000 and in India 154,000.
At 9.4 million, Europe still boasts the majority of German language students, with Poland topping the list with around 2.28 million. So today, almost everywhere, German is learnt as the second or third foreign language and only comparatively few schools offer German as the first foreign language.
German appears to be an increasingly important language in people’s careers, both at home and among those seeking to come to the country to study, work and live. Germany is more appealing than ever as a location for business and studies.
German increasingly popular as a foreign language – start learning today