According to The Guardian, a new report shows that the United States trails only Mexico in the number of Spanish speakers residing in the country. A reported 52.6 million Spanish speakers live in The United States, including bi-lingual people.
The Guardian reports:
Among the sources cited in the report is the US Census Office which estimates that the US will have 138 million Spanish speakers by 2050, making it the biggest Spanish-speaking nation on Earth, with Spanish the mother tongue of almost a third of its citizens.
By state the highest concentration is in the former Spanish colonies of the south and south-west, with New Mexico top at 47%, followed by California and Texas (both 38%) and Arizona (30%). Some 18% of New Yorkers speak Spanish while only 1.3% of West Virginians do. Perhaps surprisingly, more than 6% of Alaskans are Spanish speakers.
The report: Spanish, a live language, sites state by state figures which show that even 6% of Alaska residents are Spanish Speakers.
