Languages in Mexico 2020

In 2020, about 93.8 percent of the Mexican population was monolingual in Spanish. Around five percent spoke a combination of Spanish and indigenous languages. Spanish is the third-most spoken native language worldwide, after Mandarin Chinese and Hindi.

Mexican Spanish

Spanish was first being used in Mexico in the 16th century, at the time of Spanish colonization during the Conquest campaigns of what is now Mexico and the Caribbean. As of 2018, Mexico is the country with the largest number of native Spanish speakers worldwide. Mexican Spanish is influenced by English and Nahuatl, and has about 120 million users. The Mexican government uses Spanish in the majority of its proceedings, however it recognizes 68 national languages, 63 of which are indigenous.

Indigenous languages spoken

Of the indigenous languages spoken, two of the most widely used are Nahuatl and Maya. Due to a history of marginalization of indigenous groups, most indigenous languages are endangered, and many linguists warn they might cease to be used after a span of just a few decades. In recent years, legislative attempts such as the San Andréas Accords have been made to protect indigenous groups, who make up about 25 million of Mexico’s 125 million total inhabitants, though the efficacy of such measures is yet to be seen.