Why learn Spanish in the USA? Here are 4 Great Reasons

In this blog post we’ll go over four big reasons to take Spanish classes. Maybe you’re a beginner student of Spanish with just a few common words on the tip of your tongue. Maybe you studied Spanish in high school or college and you’re ready to rekindle a passion for Spanish-language culture and arts. No matter your level, now’s a good time to take in-person or online Spanish classes.

Why is learning Spanish important in the USA?

One that stands out is the significant number of Spanish-speaking people who live in the US. These are Spanish-speaking people from all Latin American countries and Spain, and they make up the highest ethnicity among minority groups in the US.

A map of the United States that shows where Spanish speakers live by percentage.

These Spanish speakers also have family members who were born in the United States and who learned Spanish inside the US. This population speaks the Spanish language from the US. The United States has a significant population of Spanish speakers who learned Spanish inside their American homes and neighborhoods. In a decisive way, Spanish has emerged as the second most commonly spoken language in the United States.

Furthermore, Spanish has been spoken in certain parts of the country such as Florida and Texas since the sixteenth century as well as with immigrants and Americans, who have learned it on US soil. Spanish has been part of the US since the beginning of European colonization. Zooming out to a larger context, this history is not entirely rosy. Ending the Mexican-American War in 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe meant Mexico ceded nearly all the territory now included in the U.S. states of New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, California, Texas, and western Colorado for $15 million.

Learning Spanish in the US gives you access to dialogue with an integral player of the American experience. A population which stands linguistically strong in terms of its number of speakers. Spanish will keep being spoken in the US for the upcoming future and has no threat of becoming less spoken in the twenty-first century.

Learning Spanish is asset many careers

Another reason to learn Spanish is that it is a language with a financial, economic return. Workers who can speak Spanish usually receive a higher salary when negotiating their job offer with potential employers.

There is demand for Spanish-speaking professionals in many areas of the US service economy such as: education, health, transportation, business, and legal to name a few. These workers receive higher salaries compared to American monolingual counterparts.

Spanish classes are also an investment for Americans who need to do business abroad. Spanish is spoken in most countries of Latin America, in Spain, in Equatorial Guinea in Africa, and it is the additional language of many speakers around the globe.

In a globalized economy, the need to communicate in more than one language is vital and some languages like Spanish have a geographical dominance in certain areas of the globe. Spanish classes are almost a necessity for workers in the United States who live in urban areas.

There is intense contact between the Latin community and other ethnicities and there is economic potential for providing goods and services to this population. Spanish lessons will help professionals capitalize on the economic opportunities of serving and interacting with the Spanish-speaking population.

Spanish classes provide a passport to travel

Spanish classes also give you access to opportunities to make your traveling and tourist opportunities memorable. With a year or two studying the language, you may want to venture into a trip to paradisiac beaches in Mexico, the Dominican Republic, or Puerto Rico, the archaeological ruins of Mexico City, The Yucatán Peninsula, and Peru.

A world map showing all the countries where the Spanish language is spoken.

The coastal and Caribbean flavor of Cartagena, in Colombia or Margarita Island in Venezuela, the Tango and Gaucho experience in Argentina and Uruguay are just a few of the tourist and traveling wonders of Latin America that will be enhanced through being able to communicate in Spanish.

Let’s not forget about Spain, the second most visited country in the world, where you can experience completely different cultures within a few hours of driving. The arabesque influence of Andalucia, the wonders of Catalonia with majestic cities like Barcelona, Girona, and Valencia. The castles of Castilla, the scenic beauty of Cantabria, just to name a few of the diverse social fabric that constitutes Spain.

Spanish classes will prepare you to be more aware and ready for social functions such as ordering food, checking in at a hotel, or making arrangements for sightseeing with locals who might not speak English. In addition, Spanish lessons in a specific Spanish-speaking country can build on what you’ve learned previously. In fact, you can further your study by taking a language travel class in Spain, Colombia, or Costa Rica.

You can experience the relation between the Spanish language and local culture at a more meaningful level since you will have had some experience with the language in your Spanish classes.

Academic paths may include the Spanish language

There are also academic reasons to learn Spanish. Many academic disciplines require understanding texts in prominent world languages such as Spanish. Many scholarly articles are published in Spanish. In academia, it is not always enough to just know English. You may need to have at least a reading ability in a majority language like Spanish.

A circle with the words: how to roll your R's with Spanish words radiating out from it.

A Spanish course will give you the skills to learn how to read in Spanish and also give you an opportunity to practice speaking, listening, and writing. These four skills will help you understand research from other academics and contribute to your ability to extend your research to a Spanish-speaking academic community. This is a very significant population which makes up the international academic community.

We have provided you with 4 reasons why you should learn Spanish if you live in the USA. These are not the only ones, but they should motivate you to start studying Spanish lessons, whether in person or Spanish classes online. The International Language Institute in Northampton, Massachusetts is the place for you to start. See you soon or as we say in Spanish, ¡Hasta pronto!

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