As a global learning community, it is super exciting to see how people from different countries learn and practice languages each year. From the most popular languages to learn to what motivates people to learn in the first place, come see how the world learned in 2022.
What is the most in-demand language in each country?
We looked at the 37 million plus HelloTalkers to see which languages people were learning. We then organized them by country to see which languages were most popular in 2022.
It is no surprise that English, the lingua franca, ranked as the most popular learning language in most countries. We analyzed the community and found that HelloTalkers from 183 countries and territories chose English as their most popular language to learn. HelloTalkers today span almost every corner of the globe, covering some 239 countries and territories – that’s almost one in every country and territory officially recognized by the United Nations (251).
What is the second most in-demand language in each country?
Korean and Japanese ranked highly as many countries chose the East Asian languages as their second most popular learning language in 2022. The rising influence of Korean culture can be seen in the mainstream adoption of Korean cinema, dramas, and music. Europeans, Latin Americans, and many South East Asians picked Korean as their second most popular language to learn. While Canadians, Americans, and Chinese chose Japanese as their second most in-demand language to learn. While HelloTalkers from several non-French speaking African nations such as Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Angola among others showed an interest in communicating with their French-speaking neighbors, opting for French as their second most popular language to learn.
What are the most popular learning languages on HelloTalk in 2022?
We tallied up the total number of learners for each language to see what the most popular languages were in 2022.
In 2022, over half of the community learned English, while Korean and Japanese learners collectively made up a quarter of HelloTalkers. We compared these to the most popular languages spoken worldwide in terms of the number of speakers (native and non-native speakers) and noted that while not as many people speak Japanese and Korean, the community is very interested in learning more about both Japanese and Korean language and culture. We will explore potential reasons for this when we look at what motivates people to learn a new language.
What motivates people to learn a language?
To get an idea of why there is not a direct relationship between the most popular learning languages and the most spoken languages around the world requires a bit more digging. We ran a survey to find out why English-speaking HelloTalkers chose to learn a language. We heard back from 11,736 HelloTalkers to learn more about the reasons and motivations behind language learning. Here’s what we found:
At a high level, we see that the majority of responses related to meeting new friends in foreign countries and to travel or living abroad. These reasons can be categorized as personal motivations instead of professional motivations. This may explain why Korean and Japanese are some of our most popular learning languages, especially for native English speakers.
Reciprocity drives learning on HelloTalk in 2022
At its core, HelloTalk connects learners with native speakers to help each other practice languages. Over the years, HelloTalk has helped millions of people learn languages, share culture, and make friends around the world. Let’s look at the community learning statistics for 2022 (data from Jan 1 – Nov 15).
On average, nearly 250,000 unique chats took place each day on HelloTalk. Supportive learning tools such as translations and corrections were regularly used to help people communicate and cross any barriers to learn more about each others’ culture and practice language together.
Which country has the most helpful HelloTalkers?
Corrections are one of HelloTalk’s most helpful features. Native speakers can correct your text or speech, and include an explanation to help further your understanding of their language. We analyzed corrections made by HelloTalkers from different countries to find out which country, on average, had the most helpful HelloTalkers in 2022. English speaking countries such as Australia, Canada, the U.K, and New Zealand ranked highly for average corrections made. This may be partially influenced by English being the most popular language, providing HelloTalkers from these countries with more opportunities to make corrections. Germany and Austria also make the top 10 list for corrections made, perhaps illustrating the complexity of German grammar and alluding to the need for helpful corrections.
Which countries have the chattiest HelloTalkers?
Who is the chattiest of them all? HelloTalk has a host of tools to help you find the perfect language partner, such as custom search, profile boosts, sticker emojis to break the ice, and Moments (language posts). We looked at our internal data to see which country took the crown for the chattiest group of HelloTalkers in 2022.
Which country has the most studious language learners?
Which country has the most studious language learners?
Every HelloTalker gets learning points for practicing a language. Points are given when you use one of HelloTalk’s built-in learning tools such as translations, corrections, and transcriptions. By looking at the data, we can see which country, on average, had the most studious learners in 2022.
The Future of Language Learning
On June 2022, we introduced two new ways to practice languages and connect with people from around the world: HelloTalk Live and Voiceroom. These are free and interactive language and culture events to learn through content you love and with people you enjoy.
Let’s find out how HelloTalkers got on with these new features.
Introducing free live learning tools means everyone with access to a phone and an internet connection can learn in a fun and casual setting through content they love. Instead of rigid curriculum where one size fits all, learners now have more choice and can choose livestreams and Voicerooms tailored to their interests and learning style. One thing is certain, the future of language learning will be more personalized to the learner’s needs than ever before.
We hope you enjoyed this 2022 year review. There is lots in store for 2023 to serve our growing community of language learners, teachers, and creators. We wish all HelloTalkers a happy new year and happy holidays! Stay tuned for updates and see you in the community!
The HelloTalk Team 💙
