The most practical thing you can do to make your experiences here richer and more meaningful is to converse in the local language. Our guides, articles and connections will help you to learn or improve your Spanish, and get a deeper understanding of language use in Mexico.

The post Learn Spanish first appeared on Mexperience.]]> 5009 https://www.mexperience.com/learn-spanish/spanish-in-mexico/ Fri, 08 Mar 2019 18:25:25 +0000 https://www.mexperience.com/about-spanish-in-mexico-2/ Mexican Spanish is the most polite, clear and easy to understand of Latin American Spanish dialects.

As modern communications and transport systems bring the world closer together, language remains the means by which we interact and build understanding of other peoples, cultures and the principal way in which we may learn from each other.

The Influence of Language

There is a famous story, told around the time of the Spanish Empire and its expansion west to present-day Latin America, about how Spanish grammar came into being.

So the story goes, a Bishop approached Queen Isabella of Spain, and offered to her a “book of Spanish Grammar Rules”, a work the Spanish intellectual elite had been working on for some while.

The Queen, puzzled, asked the Bishop: “Of what use is this to me?”, to which the Bishop replied, “But your Majesty, language is a perfect instrument of empire”.

And with the ‘royal adoption’ of this document, Spanish was the first ‘modern’ language to have grammar rules set out for its use; other languages followed suit.

Use of Language

Different languages have, at varying times, enjoyed varying levels of importance and kudos.

About two thousand years ago, Latin and Greek—roots of which continue to be present today underneath our modern English etymology—were the ‘lingua franca’ of their period.

Today, English has emerged as the lingua-franca of the period, in part due to historical factors, such as the expansion in the 15th and 16th centuries of the British Empire and the present-day influence of American culture.

English has succeeded as a language for another very important reason: its enormous flexibility and dynamism. As the language is bequeathed from a mixture of Romantic (Latin) and Germanic languages, and these have endowed English with a most flexible etymology, which lends itself well to the present age. There are currently more words in English than any other language.

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The Influence of Spanish

Just as the British colonized many countries around the world during the height of their empire, so the Spanish did the same, particularly between the 13th and 17th centuries, leaving the Spanish language firmly planted in each territory.

Today, Spanish is one of the most widely-spoken languages in the world.

Spanish is one of the European Union’s official languages (being spoken in Spain), it is one of the United Nation’s six official languages, and is predominant throughout Latin America (except Brazil, although Mercosur, of which Brazil is a part, uses Spanish as its official language). Over 51 million people in the United States today speak Spanish, comprised of 45 million Hispanics and some 6 million students of the Spanish language.* This makes the U.S. host to the largest Spanish-speaking community in the world, outside of Mexico. More people in the U.S. speak Spanish than those speaking Chinese, French and Italian combined. Nearly one in every seven people living in the U.S. speak Spanish, and it’s predicted that by 2050, nearly 100 million people in the United States alone–one in three–will speak Spanish.

Worldwide, Spanish is spoken by over 420 million people (some estimates suggest that up to 500 million people may speak Spanish). Spanish is commonly spoken in more than 20 countries and is the second-most spoken native language after Mandarin Chinese. (English remains the Lingua Franca of the age.)

Today, many people who learned English as their first language are beginning to appreciate the importance of learning a second (or third) language. Americans are leading the way with large numbers of mono and bi-lingual Americans (particularly of ‘baby boomer’ age) now beginning to learn second and third languages in earnest. For mono-lingual Americans, Spanish is at the top of the ‘second language wish list’.

*U.S. 2010 Census data

Reasons for Learning Spanish

Personal Development

Learning a second or third language is an investment in yourself. There is no better way to grow your skills and capabilities than by investing energy in a talent that will enable you to communicate earnestly with more human beings!

Many people for whom English is not a native language, and who want to grow personally and professionally, are going to great lengths and expense to learn English. If your native tongue is English, an investment in learning someone’s else’s native language is a sign of reverence and will be sincerely appreciated when you travel or meet and talk with others whose native tongue you have learned.

Access to Culture, Better Understanding

As more and more people are speaking Spanish in the USA—and world wide—being able to communicate in Spanish will give you access to culture and people in ways that are not possible through third party translation.

Building a better understanding of others always leads to better relationships and language is the enabling tool which facilitates better understanding of others. It will also help you to expand and improve your use of English as knowing two or more languages develops your overall ability to better articulate your thoughts, ideas and emotions with others.

Better Travel Experiences

You’ll enjoy your travels in countries where Spanish is spoken more when you can speak the language. As we pointed out in the introduction page, it is perfectly possible to get by on vacation in Mexico without speaking a word of Spanish, but having the ability to communicate with your Mexican hosts, share stories and articulate your observations and ideas in Spanish will introduce a new dimension to your travel experience.

Better Business, Higher Productivity

If you are visiting Mexico for business, live and work in Mexico, or to retire in Mexico, being able to understand and communicate in Spanish is essential if you are going to get the best from your plans and experiences.

Also, being able to communicate in Spanish will deliver higher productivity: you will get more done, you will be well regarded by those you are counting upon to help you, and you will avoid the need to have everything you want said or written translated by a third party, which is time-consuming and more expensive.

Communicating in Spanish will help you to build better trade links and relationships between your company and Mexican suppliers, clients, contractors or others upon whom your business success depends. Better communication leads to better business deals and speaking the local language will give you a definitive negotiating edge.

Employment Prospects

Your employment opportunities widen and you become a ‘more valuable’ employee if you are able to speak other languages— especially Spanish if you are employed (or seeking employment) in the United States, Central or South America or the Caribbean.

Some companies in the USA are now insisting that certain managers and senior post-holders (or people aspiring for promotion) are able to communicate well in Spanish; particularly so in markets where serving Hispanic customer’s needs is a core (or growing) function of the business.

Phonetic Language, Easier to Learn

English is a difficult language to learn.

Spanish is a phonetic language; what you see written is what you say, remembering that the “h” is always silent, and that vowels are always pronounced the same, regardless of where they appear. This makes Spanish an easy language to get acquainted with.

Basic grammar is easy, advanced grammar takes some time to get to grips with but, overall, it’s much easier for a native English speaker to learn Spanish than it is for a native Spanish speaker to learn English.

Spanish Language Courses

Online Spanish language courses offer sound and visual features that help you to get the pronunciation and emphasis right and link words and sentences with objects and situations. Spanish language courses in Mexico will immerse you in the language and are one of the best ways to learn and significantly improve your Spanish language capabilities; they are an excellent way of mixing learning with pleasure in Mexico.

See Also:

Spanish Courses in Mexico

Learn Spanish Online

Blog Articles Related to Language in Mexico

By interacting together with people who also want to learn Spanish, you’ll share each other’s knowledge and enthusiasm for a better learning experience.

Learning Spanish on a course at a language school in Mexico is the perfect way to combine learning and pleasure!

See also: Spanish Language Schools and Courses in Mexico

Build Your Confidence

Attending a course in Mexico is the most effective way to learn Spanish, improve your existing Spanish language skills, or master your advanced level.

There’s no better way of learning than to be among people who share the same goals as you. Language classes allow you to help each other to progress and improve your understanding and, most importantly with a foreign language, build your confidence in speaking Spanish with others around you.

Whether you’re an absolute beginner, someone who wants to build on existing knowledge at an intermediate level or looking to master the language, you’ll find a course somewhere to suit your needs.

If you have the time and resources available to you and you want to get immersed in learning Spanish, there is no better—and faster—way of learning good Spanish than by attending a residential language course in Mexico.

If you plan to visit Mexico frequently, for business or perhaps as part of a retirement plan, then taking a Spanish course in Mexico could be one of the best investments you make in your personal-development. Besides learning a foreign language faster and more effectively than you could do at home, you’ll have lots of fun, meet interesting people, and enjoy the privilege of mixing learning with pleasure on your visit to Mexico.

Take the Time You Need

You can take part in a residential course for as long as you like. Generally speaking, people stay for between one week and six months depending on their goals, lifestyle and budget.

Spanish language centers charge a course fee and arrange for accommodation to be provided in someone’s home, with a local family. This is particularly important, as living with Mexican family helps you to become immersed in the culture and forces you use the language skills you are acquiring on the course. It also speeds up the pace at which you learn and makes the experience more enjoyable and authentic.

Language schools usually quote the price of the course and accommodation in the total price. The families they work with are carefully chosen and are often families that are used to having student lodgers.

If you prefer to make your own arrangements for accommodation, for example, if you prefer to stay at a local hotel or rent your own apartment (for longer stays) then the lodging element of the package is discounted and you only pay for the language course.

Class Sizes and Fees

Class sizes are small (usually 5 or 6 people max), and teaching lasts about 5 hours a day. This is an ideal situation for accelerated learning as the small class sizes enable you to get a good level of personal attention while still benefiting from group learning and social interaction.

In addition to the classroom work, many courses also incorporate practical workshops into their curriculum. For example, they may take students on a shopping expedition in the town’s local market so that they may practice what they have been learning in the classroom in a real-life situation.

Fees for Spanish classes in Mexico vary depending on the school, the location, the length of the course and the services offered. As a rule of thumb, you should expect to pay around US$300 a week for classes (5 days); a fee which will include up to 7 days of accommodation and 3 meals a day.

Using a vacation to learn Spanish in Mexico is not just a great learning experience, it’s a lot of fun and does not have to break your budget.

You may consider using part of your vacation time in Mexico to learn Spanish and, for example, spend the other part of your vacation relaxing or touring other parts of Mexico or the region near to where you have been studying.

Get Immersed and Learn Quickly!

The great thing about residential language courses, is that they take place in local surroundings, so everywhere you go you’ll be immersed in the language and culture.

If you stay with a local family, you’ll be encouraged to speak more Spanish even outside of class and your confidence will build very quickly indeed! When you’re walking in the street, you’ll see adverts and signs in Spanish, the people around you will be talking Spanish, the radio you listen to and the television you watch will also be in Spanish, and all this helps your learning.

There is no better way to learn a foreign language than to be surrounded by it!

Find a Spanish Language School in Mexico

Mexico has many fine language schools which offer programs for all ages and ability levels: whether you are a complete beginner, want to improve your existing skills, or master your Spanish language abilities, there is a school and a course for you in Mexico.

See: Spanish Language Schools and Courses in Mexico for further details.

The internet has given rise to a proliferation of distance language-learning courses, programs and services.  Online courses and programs make it easy to learn Spanish from the privacy and comfort of your own home.

As we have explained in related articles, being able to converse in Spanish will give you better access to the culture and make your visit to Mexico, or lifestyle here, much more enjoyable and rewarding.

If you are traveling on business, being able to speak at least a little Spanish will go a long way to building your business network and helping your negotiations.

Find options for online language learning on our Language Services section.

This series is ideal for beginners who want to get a wider perspective of the language beyond the basic mechanics and grammar, while intermediate and advanced students of the language will particularly enjoy insights into the subtler nuances of modern-day usage of Mexican Spanish

PinPoint Mexican Spanish Language Series

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The Mother of All Expressions in Mexican Spanish

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Animal Names in Spanish: Crowing About Nomenclature

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Spanish and the Art of Managing Disappointment

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Ser y Estar: To Be or To Be, that is the Question

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The Modern Use of Güey: a Nasty Little Syllable

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