Language in Mexico

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Although there is no official language by law, Spanish is the de facto national language. It is used by virtually the whole population and all public communications (signs, documents, media, etc.) are conducted in the language. Bilingual signs in Spanish and English might be available in popular tourist destinations.

English is largely spoken in border cities with the United States as well as some tourist destinations, but much of the country is monolingual. Outside these places, more educated Mexicans (specially among the higher class and young people) will more likely be fluent in the language and/or in other languages. The most popular foreign languages to learn within Mexico after English are French, Italian, German and Japanese. Clerks, policemen, and drivers (outside touristic destinations) are the least likely to know a second language, so a student or a businessman on the street will be a better bet.

Mexico has one of the richest diversity of languages, with more of 60 indigenous languages spoken within the Mexican territory. These languages are spoken within the communities of these indigenous peoples, who are largely segregated from mainstream mestizo society. In any case, the probabilities of finding a speaker of any of these languages is small, since only half of 20% that comprises Indian population in Mexico speaks indigenous language. On the other hand, most of these communities are also fluent in Spanish as well. Therefore learning any of these indigenous languages is not indispensable at all, but can gain a lot of respect from these communities.

See also: Spanish phrasebook

• Rancho La Salada, a ranch in Coahuila
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