Britons: Language facts

August 13, 2008

Two million adults in the UK are currently learning a foreign language

One in three Britons wants to learn another language but the number of adults learning languages at local authority and further education college classes is declining.

Spanish is the most popular foreign language among adult learners, followed by Italian.

More than one in four adults regret dropping a language at school.

Most learners use a cassette or CD (36 per cent), a book (19 per cent) or get a friend to teach them (11 per cent).

Ten per cent of Britons speak a second language, while in other European Union countries 56 per cent speak two languages and 28 per cent speak three.

Source: Britons abroad: Speaking in tongues

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