I have found this very interesting stats page about how widely each language is spoken inside the EU.
47% of Europeans can speak English (16% native + 31% non-native)
32% of Europeans can speak German (24% native + 8% non-native)
28% of Europeans can speak French (16% native + 12% non-native)
As for non-mother tongue skills in each country:
- the highest percentage of non-native English speakers are found respectively in : Malta (84%), Denmark (79%), Sweden (76%), Netherlands (75%) and Cyprus (67%).
- same for French : Luxembourg (85%), Belgium (32%), Italy (18%), Portugal (16%), Ireland (15%)
However, French is the education and government language in Luxembourg, and is a main official language in Belgium (along with Dutch).
- same for German : Luxembourg (81%), Netherlands (67%), Denmark (48%), Slovenia (38%), Czech Rep. (27%).
However, Luxembourgish is a dialect of German, and both Dutch and Danish are pretty close too.
45% of European citizens can take part in a conversation in a language other than their mother tongue. The percentage vary a lot depending on the age, country and education level. If 77% of European students and 65% aged 15-24 can speak another language well enough to hold a conversation, only 26% of retired and 28% aged 55+ can do the same.
47% of Europeans can speak English (16% native + 31% non-native)
32% of Europeans can speak German (24% native + 8% non-native)
28% of Europeans can speak French (16% native + 12% non-native)
As for non-mother tongue skills in each country:
- the highest percentage of non-native English speakers are found respectively in : Malta (84%), Denmark (79%), Sweden (76%), Netherlands (75%) and Cyprus (67%).
- same for French : Luxembourg (85%), Belgium (32%), Italy (18%), Portugal (16%), Ireland (15%)
However, French is the education and government language in Luxembourg, and is a main official language in Belgium (along with Dutch).
- same for German : Luxembourg (81%), Netherlands (67%), Denmark (48%), Slovenia (38%), Czech Rep. (27%).
However, Luxembourgish is a dialect of German, and both Dutch and Danish are pretty close too.
45% of European citizens can take part in a conversation in a language other than their mother tongue. The percentage vary a lot depending on the age, country and education level. If 77% of European students and 65% aged 15-24 can speak another language well enough to hold a conversation, only 26% of retired and 28% aged 55+ can do the same.