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English Speaking Countries

Name the countries of the world where more than 50% speak English or an English-based creole as a first language.
From various sources including Wikipedia and Ethnologue
Also see Countries with the Most English Speakers
Quiz by
Quizmaster
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Last updated: June 8, 2023
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First submittedJune 7, 2010
Times taken350,778
Average score62.5%
Rating4.69
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%
Country
93
Ireland
92
United Kingdom
86
New Zealand
78
United States
73
Australia
54
Canada
Creole-speaking
Antigua and Barbuda
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Grenada
Creole-speaking
Guyana
Jamaica
St. Kitts and Nevis
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Trinidad and Tobago
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106 Recent Comments
buckworm
+2
Level 21
Jul 29, 2019
I really doubt that ten percent of Ireland do not speak English as a first language.
Jiaozira
+41
Level 72
Jul 29, 2019
Irish Gaelic + immigrant languages I'd imagine...
Sifhraven
+16
Level 76
Aug 5, 2019
Ireland is not the same as uk you know, english is the adopted language not the original. Though it has near completely overshadowed gaeilge (irish) not many native speakers left only a few regions
jmellor13
+23
Level 68
Aug 21, 2019
There are not that many people in Ireland (I think the population is a little under five million), so you only need 500,000 people to account for that 10%. Between immigrants and people whose first language is Irish, I'd think it's a very reasonable number to attain.
Lilylee
+1
Level 78
Aug 21, 2019
It's about 6,600,000.
Corrode
+17
Level 60
Aug 21, 2019
Lilylee - 4.8m in the Republic of Ireland, 6.6m on the island of Ireland
Walacama
+8
Level 83
Aug 21, 2019
In the 1960s it was under 3 million. Now almost 5 million. In 1841 it was 8 million.
daraconn
+3
Level 58
Aug 9, 2023
Taking this quiz in 2023, the number has been updated to 93%. Most of the remaining 7% would be explained by immigration, with hundreds of thousands of first-generation long-term residents or citizens whose first language is Polish, Lithuanian, (Brazilian) Portuguese, etc. The number of first-language (from childhood) speakers of Irish is tiny, and claims that 2% of the population have Irish as a first language should be treated with a degree of scepticism.
Lachieplan
+8
Level 36
Aug 21, 2019
The majority of this quiz is in the Caribbean:)
AntiMatter8192
+84
Level 77
May 29, 2020
No, I think it's on my computer.
Insdo
+19
Level 41
Aug 21, 2019
I really thought more African countries were English speaking
TWM03
+20
Level 72
Aug 21, 2019
Not many where it is spoken as a first language, but quite a lot where it is used as a lingua franca or one of many official languages.
fakeplastictrees
+7
Level 52
Aug 26, 2021
Many use it as an official language for the simple reason that SO many Indigenous languages exist that they just need a common de jure tongue for governance even though very few people speak it day to day.
cockybra
+8
Level 46
Aug 21, 2019
Guyana and Belize are in the heart of Latin America. But glad I knew guys in the Army from those places. They were British enclaves in mainland Latin America. A lot of people don't know that.
jajaco2017
+3
Level 56
Aug 21, 2019
Where is Malta?
Walacama
+74
Level 83
Aug 21, 2019
In the Mediterranean.
pkerr116
+24
Level 71
Sep 23, 2019
Just above Africa.
IsleAuHaulte
+2
Level 92
Nov 16, 2019
Milk balls?
fakeplastictrees
+8
Level 52
Aug 26, 2021
Most people speak Maltese as their mother tongue and know English or Italian as a second language.
MajesticMango
+9
Level 45
Apr 17, 2022
And call them Maltesers.
orange3472
+1
Level 71
Mar 29, 2024
Throwback to @IsleAuHaulte
Homer690
+2
Level 39
Aug 21, 2019
Do they not Speak english in South Africa? I think they do
Walacama
+23
Level 83
Aug 21, 2019
First language. Afrikaans in South Africa and many native ethnic languages. Try the other quiz mentioned, "English Speaking Countries" as opposed to first language on this quiz.
Malbaby
+5
Level 70
May 14, 2021
I do not believe that Afrikaans is South Africa's first language.
Kahikatea
+4
Level 74
Dec 17, 2021
I thought Zulu was the most common
hfreml1
+4
Level 50
Nov 14, 2022
Zulu is the most common native language, then xhosa, then afrikaans and english in fourth place.
Jehovia
+6
Level 57
Aug 21, 2019
I kept looking for other Caribbean countries when I fdound out that I missed Australia and New Zealand.
dogmeat
+4
Level 69
Aug 21, 2019
Me too except I only overlooked Australia. Got so hooked up on trying to remember all the Caribbean islands
Osk
+1
Level 15
Nov 2, 2019
Same here. I thought for sure the one I'd missed would be a Caribbean island or a singular African country that made it on here. But nope. Australia. I guess when I typed in New Zealand I assumed I'd already done Australia, but apparently not.
parsons8
+2
Level 26
Sep 22, 2019
I did quite well on the Caribbean countries, missing only Grenada--and I considered it, but then assumed it was more likely Spanish. But I forgot Ireland!!! So BAD of me, especially considering I'm of partial Irish heritage.
Jazziedoodles789
+3
Level 42
Nov 3, 2019
I thought that english was the official langauge of Nigeria,

and most countries in Europe speak english as a 2nd language, I don't know anyone who doesn't speak english

Sifhraven
+6
Level 76
Nov 14, 2019
At home??
springb
+1
Level 64
Nov 12, 2019
For my own curiosity, why are some of the percentage backrounds red and some white?
fuanacdc
+5
Level 88
Nov 14, 2019
"Includes speakers of English creoles (marked in red)"
kiwikiwiNZ
+5
Level 39
Nov 24, 2019
i. forgot. canada.
preparedfordementors1123
+1
Level 37
Feb 20, 2020
I was focusing on the Caribbean countries that I didn't know and forgot Ireland and Canada. *facepalm*
Philip09
+2
Level 65
Mar 17, 2020
Don't they speak English in all the former British colonies in Africa?

i.e. Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, etc..

hellodrew
+9
Level 66
May 5, 2020
They do a lot in those countrires, at the top though it states;

"Name the countries where more than 50% speak English as a first language."

CatcoolH
+1
Level 69
Mar 19, 2020
I'm surprised that only 30 percent had Guyana. It used to be called British Guyana just like French Guyana.
AntiMatter8192
+2
Level 77
May 29, 2020
It's French Guiana, but I wonder why its called that. Is it French for Guyana?
Shoum
+3
Level 57
Jun 12, 2022
no, in French it is called "Guyane"
SupBroDude
+1
Level 53
Oct 23, 2025
No it's because it's the French part of the Larger Guiana region aka The Guianas
johnnyrdnck
+2
Level 48
May 25, 2020
malta?
Quizmaster
+5
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
Only 10.6% of Maltese people speak English as a first language according to Wikipedia, although another 77.7% can speak it as an additional language.
BigNate
+3
Level 51
Jun 15, 2020
And what about the island of Dominica? I'll do some research, but when I was there most folks spoke English.
KainenManas
+1
Level 97
Aug 27, 2020
So close to forgetting Canada (wow)
zlvb
+1
Level 32
Sep 22, 2020
forgot about st vincent and the grenadines!!!
Asterlan
+1
Level 57
Oct 24, 2020
This quiz would look quite different with just fluent speakers, not native language. I’d say it’d be a lot longer, especially in Europe and Africa.
parkave
+3
Level 56
Nov 30, 2020
India as well.
karimslaptop
+2
Level 16
Jan 1, 2021
if you know the Caribbean this should be easy for you
DavidfromBA
+3
Level 73
Feb 19, 2021
Am I the only one who finds it odd that the percentage of Canadians who speak English as a first language is given as 57%? I know that French is the predominant language in Québec, and that there's a large immigrant population, but 57% seems very low.
Dontforget
+8
Level 75
Jun 28, 2021
Imo it's not that surprising,

57% of the country speaks English

Around 21% speaks French

That adds up to about 78%

~22% of the Canadian population is made up of immigrants... which would add up to basically equal 100%

Its true that there are probably many English and French speaking immigrants. But on the other hand, many children (of immigrants, or other) learn their parents' or family's language before they learn English or French, making it their first language.

I don't know if the two of those cancel each other out, but I wouldn't be surprised if they did.

Please forgive me if any of this doesn't make sense or the math doesn't add up... I just got my wisdom teeth out and I still have the anaesthetic in my system lol

fakeplastictrees
+3
Level 52
Aug 26, 2021
Indigenous languages as well as languages spoken by immigrants make up something like 20% which leaves another 23% for French which I think is accurate so 57% seems feasible.
Quizmaster
+2
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
54% now.
lightcactus
+3
Level 55
Mar 1, 2021
I thought Malta was a completely English speaking nation?
AlexThirkell
+13
Level 74
Mar 14, 2021
In Malta almost everybody speaks English as a second language, but the main first language is Maltese and the national dish is Maltesers.
Hampus
+2
Level 56
Mar 22, 2021
I got em all except... Canada.. How can I skip Canada while even guessing Mexico? That's dumb.
fakeplastictrees
+1
Level 52
Aug 26, 2021
In all fairness it is at the bottom of the list. Roughly half of Canada has another language as their mother tongue.
ShreyanP
+3
Level 38
Mar 28, 2021
Why you didn't put India? The language English is important for India.
JackintheBox
+6
Level 82
May 14, 2021
The quiz looks for countries with a majority of people speaking it as a first language.
StabakMallick
+4
Level 21
Apr 28, 2021
English is also spoken in St Lucia,Botswana,Namibia,and Zambia
StabakMallick
+2
Level 21
Apr 28, 2021
It is also spoken in South Africa
JackintheBox
+4
Level 82
May 14, 2021
Less than a majority of people there speak it as a first language
fakeplastictrees
+1
Level 52
Aug 26, 2021
57% is the baseline for this list. Nowhere near that fraction of South Africans speak English as their first language.
Quizmaster
+2
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
English is the fourth-most common first language in South Africa after Zulu, Xhosa, and Afrikaans.
Jetpunkmaster000
+1
Level 49
Apr 29, 2021
You forgot India.
Quizmaster
+6
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
India has almost no native English speakers. Just 0.02%.
StabakMallick
+1
Level 21
May 29, 2021
India should be in the list.
Tomo234
+1
Level 24
Jun 3, 2021
Barbados? Seriously?
Tomo234
+1
Level 24
Jun 3, 2021
Carribean?
StabakMallick
+2
Level 21
Jul 4, 2021
Also Fiji and Mauritius
Quizmaster
+3
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
Not even close. Even counting speakers of English as a second-language it's below 20%.
ritan
+1
Level 47
Dec 31, 2021
As soon as I remembered the Caribbean countries, it was easy, I just typed them all to see what works
PolarSucksAtGeo
+1
Level 38
Jan 6, 2022
The Philippines: Am i a joke to you?
Relox84
+3
Level 69
Jan 8, 2022
I doubt the Philippines have that many native English speakers. The relevant Wikipedia page doesn't even list English as part of natively spoken languages.
Quizmaster
+3
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
Only 0.04% of Filipinos speak English as a native language.
Findlay
+6
Level 80
Feb 20, 2022
I suspect Singapore will land on this list in the next few years. Wikipedia (quoting Statistics Singapore) has English as the first language of 48.3% of Singaporeans, and it's growing rapidly: in 1990 that figure was only 18.8%. English is certainly the dominant language of Singapore, not only does it have a plurality of first-language speakers (having overtaken Mandarin in the last decade), but it is the lingua franca amongst Singaporeans generally, with the overwhelmingly majority of Singaporeans being able to speak it.
Quizmaster
+3
Level ∞
Jun 8, 2023
Yes it will. As of 2020, Singapore is 48.3% native English speakers. So probably in the next decade.
coolboyAarav
+1
Level 37
Aug 4, 2023
Singapore speaks brilliant English.
daddydonkey
+1
Level 25
Feb 25, 2022
people get UK more than Australia >:
RobNobody
+9
Level 80
Jul 2, 2022
I mean, it is the country where English came from in the first place.
Ritzrandom
+1
Level 30
Jun 28, 2022
Where's South Africa?
RobNobody
+6
Level 80
Jul 2, 2022
At the southern tip of Africa.

(Though to answer the question you're actually asking, South Africa isn't on this quiz because less than 10% of its population speak English as a first language, and the cutoff for this quiz is 50%.)

alexandriaa
+1
Level 50
Feb 20, 2023
Got 6/16!!

So proud of myself!

Corrupt
+4
Level 31
Apr 17, 2023
Man i missed US, I thought it was spanish speaking country :(
SpartanLlama
+1
Level 77
Aug 9, 2023
Ah yes
coolboyAarav
+2
Level 37
Aug 4, 2023
You forgot about these countries :

Singapore

South Africa

Nigeria

Dollyfroggy
+2
Level 63
Aug 10, 2023
None of those have 50% of their population that are first-language English speakers, but Singapore is close.
Sifhraven
+4
Level 76
Jun 14, 2024
You forgot to read the quiz description and all the comments and replies that came before you.
SpartanLlama
+1
Level 77
Aug 9, 2023
Missed Guyana and Jamaica
s7jworthington
+1
Level 22
Aug 9, 2023
Yes, Singapore speaks English as a first language
Dollyfroggy
+1
Level 63
Aug 9, 2023
It's just under 49%. The cutoff is 50%.
CeartGoLeor
+3
Level 91
Aug 9, 2023
As an Irishman, it saddens me that that the percentage of English first language speakers is higher even than the UK.
hwes
+1
Level 89
Aug 9, 2023
How do you distinguish between creole, dialect and proper English? Spend some time in a Newfoundland outport and you'll wonder why that's called English and Jamaican patois is called creole. Since English has plenty of accents or dialects some which are difficult for others to understand, why pick on the Caribbeans as creole and not dialects.
Wistful
+2
Level 72
Jan 16, 2024
The line between dialect and language is incredibly blurred, with no set definition. As for a creole, it's a mixture of languages.
brandybuck96
+2
Level 83
Feb 10, 2024
More specifically, Creoles are usually lexified by a coloniser language (English, French, Spanish etc), but their underlying grammar is claimed to be from West African language families. And the Creoles sprang up in very specific sets of circumstances (i.e. slavery) where groups of enslaved people who couldn't understand each other were often deliberately put together. Creoles were then the result of the next generation naturally reformulating communication attempts and pidgins into a grammatical system.

Dialects on the other hand may have influences from other languages or dialects, but form and develop over a much longer time scale, and aren't associated with critical situations like enslavement, and are usually much more grammatically similar to other dialects of the same 'parent' language.

wolfbarnes
+2
Level 78
Feb 22, 2024
Utter disappointment to see Ireland at the top of that list
geosarah
+1
Level 22
Mar 29, 2024
100% first try!! took almost the entire time though but still proud
gengarca
+1
Level 35
Apr 22, 2024
I got everything except for one. I got all of the Caribbean nations that were on this list.

I missed CANADA

Jonney
+1
Level 60
May 9, 2024
Every source I've checked has Canada at at least 60% native english speakers, some even higher. I'm not sure where the 54% came from.
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Dec 3, 2024
Honestly, the true number might be even less than 50% now given the large amount of recent immigration.
Timmerz84
+1
Level 39
Dec 1, 2024
As a Canadian, I find it very hard to believe that only 54% of the country speaks English as a first language. Although English and French are both official languages, the country's francophones have traditionally only made up roughly 1/5 of the population. Ultimately, I suppose the 54% must be on account of mass immigration in recent years, because there's no way it used to be that low.
Carat04
+2
Level 46
Dec 2, 2024
What about Singapore?
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Dec 3, 2024
While English is the most commonly spoken first language there, it is still only at 48%. Likely it will be above 50% on the next census.
Dylan27
+1
Level 44
Aug 20, 2025
What about Singapore
Cellomaster12
+1
Level 38
Sep 23, 2025
What about Iceland, the national language is Icelandic but 90% of the population speak English

And Singapore

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