In Switzerland, two in three people regularly use several daily languages. These are often national languages. The most widespread non -national idiom is English.
It is in French -speaking Switzerland that there are the largest number of multilingual people (66%), the Federal Statistical Office (OFS) said on Thursday. And young people are more numerous than their elders to use several languages at work, family or Internet.
Plurilingual families
Thus, 81% of 15-24 year olds use several languages, compared to only 38% of 65 years and over. For some, multilingualism begins very early: 38% of children and young people under the age of 15 mean at least two languages at home. About one in five children speak several languages with his parents.
Besides national languages, English is most often used. In the German -speaking space, more people use English than in French and, in French -speaking Switzerland, more often than German. According to the OFS, a good half of the people aged 15 to 64 believe that their own knowledge of English is good or very good.
Spanish and Portuguese are mainly widespread in French -speaking Switzerland, while the Albanian, the Bosnian, the Croatian, the Montenegrin and the Serb are rather spoken in German -speaking Switzerland.
A quarter learns languages
Almost a quarter of the population aged 25 and over learns one or more languages. The most learned or in -depth are English, German and French. For German and French, this is mainly done for professional reasons. On the other hand, people want to learn English rather for holidays and travel.
The survey reveals that French is mainly learned at school. As for the German, people acquire it especially in the context of their work or language lessons.
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