multilingualism
Sign in to savethumb|right|The frontage of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, with text written in eleven of South Africa's twelve official languages thumb|A multilingual sign outside the mayor's office in Novi Sad, Serbia, written in the four official languages of the city: Serbian, Hungarian, Slovak, and Pannonian Rusyn thumb|A stenciled danger sign in Singapore written in English, Chinese, Tamil, and Malay (the four official languages of Singapore) thumb|The logo and name of the Federal administration of Switzerland|Swiss federal administration in the four national languages of Switzerland (German,
AI overview
Multilingualism is the practice of using multiple languages in a single place or institution, as seen in countries like South Africa, Switzerland, and Singapore where official documents and signs are displayed in several languages simultaneously. It matters because it allows governments and public institutions to communicate with and serve all their citizens and residents, regardless of which language they speak.
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Article
40 sectionsContents
- History
- Definition
- Acquisition
- Receptive bilingualism
- Order of acquisition
- Outcomes
- In individuals
- Cognitive ability
- Auditory ability
- Economic benefits
- Psychology
- Personality
- Hyperpolyglots and savants{{anchor|Hyperpolyglots|Polyglots and hyperpolyglots}}
- Neuroscience
- In communities
- Interaction between speakers of different languages
- Computing
- Artificial Languages
- Natural Languages
- Internet
- English-speaking countries
- Asia
- Africa
- Europe
- Americas
- United States
- Music
- Literature
- Fiction
- Poetry
- Film
- Television
- Terms for speakers
- See also
- Legislation and movements
- Education
- Notes
- References
- Further reading
- External links
thumb|right|The frontage of the Constitutional Court of South Africa, with text written in eleven of South Africa's twelve official languages thumb|A multilingual sign outside the mayor's office in Novi Sad, Serbia, written in the four official languages of the city: Serbian, Hungarian, Slovak, and Pannonian Rusyn thumb|A stenciled danger sign in Singapore written in English, Chinese, Tamil, and Malay (the four official languages of Singapore) thumb|The logo and name of the Federal administration of Switzerland|Swiss federal administration in the four national languages of Switzerland (German, French, Italian, and Romansh)
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all Europeans claim to speak at least one language other than their mother tongue, but many read and write in one language. Being multilingual is advantageous for people wanting to participate in trade, globalization and cultural openness. Owing to the ease of access to information facilitated by the Internet, individuals' exposure to multiple languages has become increasingly possible. People who speak several languages are also called polyglots.