Many people ask themselves the question, "Do I need to learn Spanish?" both consciously and subconsciously. Usually the answer comes up something like, "No. I speak English, everybody in the U.S. speaks English, I don't need to speak Spanish." But maybe before jumping to that conclusion, we should look into the matter more deeply.

The last U.S. Census, made in the year 2000, established that there were over 35 million Hispanics in the U.S. These Hispanics made up 12.5% of the total population. Furthermore, Hispanics seem to be the fastest-growing ethnic group in the U.S. By 2004 Hispanics numbered 42 million, about 13.7% of the total population.

And we are not talking about poor wetbacks here. Like other waves of immigrants before them, the Hispanics are assimilating, growing and prospering. Today they represent tremendous purchasing power in the U.S. economy. The magazine "Hispanic Business", in its May, 2004 edition, reported the results of a study on the subject. The study found that the disposable income of Hispanics, the U.S.'s largest minority group, was almost $700 billion! Moreover, their disposable income was expected to exceed $1 trillion by 2010!

We are talking here about numbers and economic power to be noted and reckoned with!

So how does this affect your choice of languages to learn? The U.S. census of 2000 told us that three-fourths of Hispanics speak a language other than English in their homes. 99+ per cent of them speak Spanish. Furthermore, the census revealed that 2 out of every 5 Hispanics reported that they spoke English less than "very well". You can read about it in "We the People: Hispanics in the United States, A Census 2000 Special Report", by Roberto R. Ramirez, December 2004.

That means that of the 42 million Hispanics in the U.S. as of 2004, 40% or 16.8 million do not speak English very well and prefer to speak in Spanish. That group comprises 5.5% of the total U.S. population!

So one of the reasons to learn Spanish is to be able to speak with your neighbors! And it's not just for travel south of the Rio Grande any more.

At one time concentrations of Spanish-speaking people were to be found only along the U.S. - Mexican border and in New York City. Not any more! Now they are all over, notably California, Texas and Florida, of course but Illinois, Pennsylvania, Georgia... practically all over! Almost wherever you are you are going to encounter groups of your neighbors who speak very little English, only Spanish.

So perhaps you want to rethink that question about learning Spanish. As well as giving you the ability to communicate with your neighbors, learning Spanish is also a culturally expanding experience. Spanish history books are different from English history books... and the Spanish were in the new world a hundred years before the English were!

Learn and understand more of the background of the largest minority group in the U.S.! Learn to speak Spanish.