Hispanophone
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The term Hispanophone (in Spanish, hispanohablante, hispanófono) denotes Spanish-speakers and relation to the Spanish-speaking world. The word originates with the Roman name of the Iberian Peninsula, Hispania, which comprised the territory of the modern states of Spain, Portugal, Andorra and the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar as well as a small southern part of France.
In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The term specifically refers to people whose cultural background is primarily associated with Spain, regardless of ethnic and geographical differences. The Hispanophone culture is the legacy of the Spanish colonial empire.
There are an estimated 417 million Hispanophones globally, making Spanish one of the most widely spoken languages in the world today. Hispanophone areas include Spain (where the language originated) and Hispanic America. There is a sizable Hispanophone minority in the United States. In the 2000 census, it comprised 10.7% of the population over the age of five - over 28 million people.[2] There are also smaller Hispanophone groups in Canada, northern Morocco, Equatorial Guinea, the Philippines (the latter three being former colonies of Spain) and in many other places, particularly large cities.
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[edit] References
- ^ For detailed information about the sources taken to make the map, see its description page
- ^ Modern Language Association. [1] Most spoken languages in the entire US]. Retrieved on 2007-10-24.
es:Distribución geográfica del idioma español fr:Hispanophonie pl:Rozmieszczenie geograficzne języka hiszpańskiego pt:Hispanófono
