The German language is spoken by approximately 100 million people as their native language, and by about a further 80 million non-native speakers. Apart from Germany itself, the largest number of native German speakers can be found in Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg – in each of these countries, German is the majority language. Additionally, there are German speaking communities in quite a number of other European countries including Italy, Belgium, France, Denmark, and others too. German speaking communities can also be found around the wider world, including the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, and the former German colony of Namibia.
Learning German, just like learning any other language, is of course a useful skill. Whether you plan to visit a German-speaking area on vacation or business, or simply hope to improve your access to German culture, you’re sure to find learning German worthwhile.
The key question however is how to get started? Many people have experience of learning languages at school, and as a result may have a mental image that the only way to learn a new language is through a traditional classroom environment. If you don’t like going to classes, this image may even put you off. However, while classroom learning remains an option, today the advent of computer technology has made it a lot easier to learn a new language in the comfort of your own home. You can choose from a variety of software-based language learning courses (for German and of course other languages), and in many cases, the course materials can be delivered to your computer entirely via the Internet.