When we discuss languages, one of the most poignant questions that arises is ‘what is the world’s most spoken language?’. We have all been there, the thought pops into our heads or it’s the question in a pub quiz, we jump on a search engine to discover that is is Mandarin.

Mandarin? I know, it may have come as shock, surely English is the most spoken language in the world? English is the most widely spoken language, meaning that is is spoken across various countries and continents, however, due to the vast expanding Chinese population, Mandarin is spoken by the largest amount of people on Earth making it the worlds most spoken language.

But does anyone question what the least spoken language is? A living language which is spoken everyday (unlike Latin which is now mostly practiced in classrooms). A language that is still used as a native language, taught from birth and used in everyday life.

According to World Atlas, the answer is Lemerig. Lemerig  is the language spoken by the fewest amount of people with only 2 speakers! Spoken in Vanuatu which is located in the South Pacific Ocean, Lemerig has 11 phonemic vowels. With only 2 people speaking the language, the question is, will this language soon be extinct or will there be students willing to carry on its use?

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