Why is English the most popular second language?

The reason why English is spoken so widely is largely a legacy of the British Empire, with the global influence of the United States also playing a key role in the popularity of the language.

What are the top 10 languages spoken in the world?

Top 10 Languages By Total Number Of SpeakersEnglish. 1.132 billion total speakers.Mandarin Chinese. 1.117 billion total speakers.Hindi. 615 million total speakers.Spanish. 534 million total speakers.French. 280 million total speakers.Standard Arabic. 274 million total speakers.Bengali. 265 million total speakers.Russian.

What are the 3 most popular languages?

The Top 10 Most Spoken Languages in the WorldMandarin Chinese (1.1 billion speakers) English (983 million speakers) Hindustani (544 million speakers) Spanish (527 million speakers) Arabic (422 million speakers) Malay (281 million speakers) Russian (267 million speakers) Bengali (261 million speakers)