Here's a breakdown of where Portuguese is spoken:
Native Speakers:
* Brazil: The largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world, with over 200 million speakers.
* Portugal: The origin of the language, with over 10 million speakers.
* Angola: About 12 million speakers.
* Mozambique: Around 16 million speakers.
* Guinea-Bissau: Almost 1.5 million speakers.
* Cape Verde: About 500,000 speakers.
* Sao Tome and Principe: Around 170,000 speakers.
* East Timor: About 1 million speakers.
Other Countries with Significant Portuguese Speakers:
* Spain: The Galicia region in northwest Spain has a significant Galician-speaking population, a language closely related to Portuguese.
* United States: A large community of Brazilian and Portuguese immigrants makes Portuguese one of the most spoken languages in the US.
* Other countries: Smaller Portuguese-speaking communities exist in other countries due to immigration and historical ties, including Venezuela, Canada, France, Australia, and Japan.
Total Speakers:
The total number of Portuguese speakers worldwide is estimated to be around 257 million.
This means Portuguese is a globally important language with a rich history and cultural significance.