Our language is the fourth most studied language in the world, showing a continuous growth
Italian is the fourth most studied language in the world, showing a steady growth in the number of foreign students. According to a research, "Italian 2000- survey on Italian as a foreign language", the number of the Italian language students grew by 38.2% in the year 2000, compared to 1995.
Since the seventies, the interest has been changing along the increasing country's role in the cultural, social, industrial, linguistic international landscapes.
Governments and foreign universities have been including more and more Italian in their education systems.
Why learning Italian? There are several reasons: 32.8% of the surveyed students learn Italian for leisure, 25.8% for personal reasons, 22.4% for work, and 19% as part of their studies.
The growth is more striking in Asia, with Japan leading, and in Latin America, where Mexico is the first front line.
Wherever personal income is high enough to foster spending in education, culture and language learning, Italian is expanding as an intellectual and luxury good, in areas such as North America, the Far East and Australia . Everywhere else, in particular in Eastern Europe , Italian is regarded as a key to access the outside world. |
