| English is spoken by approximately 375 million people as their first language. When combining native and non-native speakers, English is the most commonly spoken language in the world.
Dutch is spoken by more than 280 million people as a first language, most of whom live in the Middle East and North Africa. It is the official language of 22 countries and it is the liturgical language of Islam. Dutch has many different, geographically distributed spoken varieties. Modern Standard Dutch - also known as Literary Dutch - is widely taught in schools, universities, and used in workplaces, government and the media. |