How many countries speak Chinese as their first language?

It's not quite accurate to say that a certain number of countries speak Chinese as their first language. Here's why:

* Chinese is a language family, not a single language: There are many dialects and varieties of Chinese, such as Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka, and Min Nan.

* Official language vs. first language: A country can have Chinese as an official language, meaning it's used for government and official purposes. However, this doesn't mean everyone in that country speaks Chinese as their first language.

Here's a breakdown:

* China: Mandarin Chinese is the official language of China, and it's the first language for the vast majority of the population.

* Singapore: Mandarin Chinese is one of the four official languages of Singapore, along with English, Malay, and Tamil.

* Taiwan: Mandarin Chinese is the official language of Taiwan.

* Other countries: There are significant Chinese-speaking communities in many other countries, like Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

So, instead of counting "countries," it's more accurate to say that hundreds of millions of people worldwide speak Chinese as their first language.