List of countries and territories where English is an official language

The following is a list of countries and territories where English is an official language used in citizen interactions with government officials. As of 2024^[update], there are 57 sovereign states and 28 non-sovereign entities where English is an official language. Many administrative divisions have declared English an official language at the local or regional level.

English language distribution

  Majority native language

  Official or administrative language, but not majority language

Most states where English is an official language are former territories of the British Empire. Exceptions include Rwanda and Burundi^{[also should be on map]}, which were formerly German and then Belgian colonies; Cameroon, where only part of the country was under the British mandate; and Liberia, the Philippines, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau, which were American territories. English is the sole official language of the Commonwealth of Nations and of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). English is one of the official languages of the United Nations, the European Union, the African Union, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Caribbean Community, the Union of South American Nations, and many other international organisations. Although English is not de jure an official language at the national level in the United States, most states and territories within the United States have English as an official language, and only Puerto Rico uses a language other than English as a primary working language.

The United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, where the overwhelming majority of native English speakers reside, do not have English as an official language de jure, but English is considered their de facto official language because it dominates in these countries.^{[citation needed]}

Sovereign states

English is a de jure official language

Country	code	Geographic region	Population[lower-alpha 1]	Primary language?
Antigua and Barbuda[citation needed]	ATG	Caribbean	85,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
The Bahamas[1]	BHS	Caribbean	331,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Barbados[2]	BRB	Caribbean	294,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Belize[3]	BLZ	Central America	288,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Botswana[3]	BWA	Africa	1,882,000	Yes
Burundi[4]	BDI	Africa	10,114,505	No
Cameroon[1]	CMR	Africa	22,534,532	No (co-official with French, but only spoken primarily in the Northwest and Southwest of the country)
Canada	CAN	North America	38,048,738	Yes (Co-official with French, and a predominant language nationwide except for Quebec (where French is the predominant language) and Nunavut (where Inuktitut and Inuinnaqtun are the predominant languages))
Dominica[1]	DMA	Caribbean	73,000	Yes (French-based creole language)
Eswatini[1]	SWZ	Africa	1,141,000	No
Fiji[1]	FJI	Oceania	828,000	Yes (used as lingua franca, mostly and widely spoken, educational, commerce, and government)
The Gambia[1]	GMB	Africa	1,709,000	Yes
Ghana[1]	GHA	Africa	27,000,000	Yes (used as lingua franca)
Grenada[1]	GRD	Caribbean	111,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Guyana[5]	GUY	South America	738,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
India[3][6]	IND	Asia	1,428,627,663	No (but official and educational)
Ireland[7][8]	IRL	Europe	4,900,000	Yes (Irish is co-official)
Jamaica[9]	JAM	Caribbean	2,714,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Kenya[1]	KEN	Africa	45,010,056	Yes (used in business and education)
Kiribati[1]	KIR	Oceania	95,000	No
Lesotho[1]	LSO	Africa	2,008,000	No
Liberia[1]	LBR	Africa	3,750,000	Yes
Malawi[10]	MWI	Africa	16,407,000	Yes (used as lingua franca)
Malta[1]	MLT	Europe	537,000	No (but official and in business and education)
Marshall Islands[1]	MHL	Oceania	59,000	No
Micronesia[1]	FSM	Oceania	110,000	Yes
Namibia[1]	NAM	Africa	2,074,000	No (used as lingua franca)
Nauru[11]	NRU	Oceania	10,000	No (but widely spoken)
Nigeria[1][12]	NGA	Africa	182,202,000	Yes (used as official language)
Pakistan[1]	PAK	Asia	212,742,631	No (but official and educational)
Palau[3]	PLW	Oceania	20,000	No
Papua New Guinea[13][14]	PNG	Oceania	7,059,653	Yes (official and educational)
Philippines	PHL	Asia	110,864,327	No (but official, educational, used in government, and used as lingua franca)
Rwanda[15]	RWA	Africa	13,240,439	No
Saint Kitts and Nevis[16]	KNA	Caribbean	50,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Saint Lucia[1]	LCA	Caribbean	165,000	Yes (French-based creole language)
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines[17]	VCT	Caribbean	120,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Samoa[18]	WSM	Oceania	188,000	No
Seychelles[1]	SYC	Africa / Indian Ocean	87,000	No
Sierra Leone[1]	SLE	Africa	6,190,280	Yes (English-based creole language)
Singapore	SGP	Asia	5,469,700	Yes (official language, lingua franca, mostly and widely spoken, and educational)
Solomon Islands[1]	SLB	Oceania	507,000	Yes
South Africa[19]	ZAF	Africa	54,956,900	Yes (official, educational and lingua franca in formal economy)
South Sudan[20]	SSD	Africa	12,340,000	Yes
Sudan[1]	SDN	Africa	40,235,000	No
Tanzania[1]	TZA	Africa	51,820,000	Yes (used in business and education)
Tonga[21]	TON	Oceania	100,000	No
Trinidad and Tobago[1]	TTO	Caribbean	1,333,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Tuvalu[3]	TUV	Oceania	11,000	No
Uganda[22]	UGA	Africa	47,053,690	Yes
Vanuatu[23]	VUT	Oceania	226,000	No
Zambia[1]	ZMB	Africa	16,212,000	Yes (used as lingua franca)
Zimbabwe[1]	ZWE	Africa	15,178,957	Yes

English is a predominant language without de jure designation as official

In these countries, English is conventionally spoken by both the government and main population, despite it having no de jure official status at national level.

ISO code	Country	Geographic region	Population	Primary language?
AUS	Australia	Oceania	26,461,166	Yes
NZL	New Zealand[24]	Oceania	5,109,702	Yes
GBR	United Kingdom	Europe	68,138,484	Yes
USA	United States[lower-alpha 2]	North America	339,665,118	Yes

English is a de facto working language

In these countries, English is spoken in government or education, but it is not recognised as de jure official, nor a primary language spoken by the main population

Country	ISO code	Geographic region	Population[lower-alpha 1]
Bangladesh[25]	BAN	Asia	172,954,319
Bhutan[26]	BTN	Asia	727,145
Brunei[27]	BRN	Asia	440,715
Israel[28][29][30]	ISR	Asia / Middle East	8,051,200
Malaysia[31]	MYS	Asia	32,730,000
Mauritius[32]	MUS	Africa / Indian Ocean	1,262,000
Qatar[33]	QAT	Asia / Middle East	2,675,522
Sri Lanka[34][35]	LKA	Asia	20,277,597
Timor-Leste[36]	TLS	Asia	1,340,513
United Arab Emirates[37]	ARE	Asia / Middle East	9,809,000

Non-sovereign entities

English is a de jure official language

Entity	Sovereign state	Region	Population[lower-alpha 1]	Primary language?
Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus[citation needed]	United Kingdom	Europe	15,700	No
American Samoa[lower-alpha 3]	United States	Oceania	67,700	No (official language)
Anguilla[1]	United Kingdom	Caribbean	18,090	No (English-based creole language)
Bermuda[lower-alpha 4][1]	United Kingdom	North America	65,000	Yes
British Virgin Islands[1]	United Kingdom	Caribbean	23,000	No (English-based creole language)
Cayman Islands[3]	United Kingdom	Caribbean	47,000	Yes (English-based creole language)
Cook Islands[1][lower-alpha 5]	New Zealand	Oceania	20,000	No
Curaçao[38]	Netherlands	Caribbean	150,563	No
Falkland Islands and South Georgia[citation needed]	United Kingdom	South America	3,000	Yes
Gibraltar[1]	United Kingdom	Europe	33,000	No (Both English and Llanito are spoken on a daily basis as the primary languages)
Guam[lower-alpha 6]	United States	Oceania	173,000	Yes (co-official with Chamorro)
Hong Kong[lower-alpha 7][1]	China	Asia	7,097,600	No (but de jure and de facto co-official with Chinese[39])
Isle of Man[lower-alpha 8]	United Kingdom	Europe	80,058	Yes
Jersey[lower-alpha 9][1]	United Kingdom	Europe	89,300	Yes
Niue[1][lower-alpha 5]	New Zealand	Oceania	1,600	No
Norfolk Island[1]	Australia	Oceania	1,828	No (English-based creole language)
Northern Mariana Islands[citation needed][lower-alpha 10]	United States	Oceania	53,883	Yes (co-official with Chamorro)
Pitcairn Islands[lower-alpha 11][1]	United Kingdom	Oceania	50	Yes
Puerto Rico[lower-alpha 12]	United States	Caribbean	3,991,000	No (co-official with Spanish as the primary language)
Rotuma[citation needed]	Fiji	Oceania	1,594	No
Sint Maarten[40]	Netherlands	Caribbean	40,900	No (English-based creole language)
Turks and Caicos Islands[1]	United Kingdom	Caribbean	26,000	No (English-based creole language)
U.S. Virgin Islands[lower-alpha 13]	United States	Caribbean	111,000	No (English-based creole language)

English is a de facto official language

Entity	Sovereign state	Region	Population[lower-alpha 1]
Barbuda[citation needed]	Antigua and Barbuda	Caribbean	1,300
British Indian Ocean Territory[citation needed]	United Kingdom	Indian Ocean	3,000
Guernsey[lower-alpha 14]	United Kingdom	Europe	61,811
Montserrat[1]	United Kingdom	Caribbean	5,900
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha[3]	United Kingdom	South Atlantic	5,660

English is a de facto official, but not a primary language

Entity	Sovereign state	Region	Population[lower-alpha 1]
Christmas Island[lower-alpha 15][1]	Australia	Southeast Asia	1,508
Cocos (Keeling) Islands[lower-alpha 16][1]	Australia	Southeast Asia	596
Tokelau[41]	New Zealand	Oceania	1,400

Country subdivisions

In these country subdivisions, English has de jure official status, but English is not official in their respective countries at the national level.

Country subdivisions where English is a de jure official language

Subdivision	Country	Region	Population
San Andrés y Providencia[42]	Colombia	South America	75,167
Sarawak[43][44][45]	Malaysia	Asia	2,471,140
Saba[46]	Netherlands	Caribbean	1,991
Sint Eustatius[46]			3,897
Scotland[47]	United Kingdom	Europe	5,424,800
Wales[48]			3,125,000
Alabama[49]	United States	North America	4,833,722
Alaska[50]			735,132
Arizona[51]			6,626,624
Arkansas[49]			2,959,373
California[49]			38,332,521
Colorado[49]			5,268,367
Florida[49]			21,299,325
Georgia[49]			10,519,475
Hawaii[49]		Oceania	1,404,054
Idaho[49]		North America	1,612,136
Illinois[49]			12,882,135
Indiana[49]			6,570,902
Iowa[49]			3,090,416
Kansas[49]			2,893,957
Kentucky[49]			4,395,295
Louisiana[49]			4,657,757
Massachusetts[52]			6,794,422
Mississippi[49]			2,991,207
Missouri[49]			6,083,672
Montana[49]			1,015,165
Nebraska[49]			1,868,516
New Hampshire[49]			1,323,459
North Carolina[49]			9,848,060
North Dakota[49]			723,393
Oklahoma[53]			3,850,568
South Carolina[49]			4,774,839
South Dakota[49]			844,877
Tennessee[49]			6,495,978
Utah[49]			2,900,872
Virginia[49]			8,260,405
West Virginia[54]			1,844,128
Wyoming[49]			582,658

See also

• British Empire portal

• English-only movement
• Anglo-America
• Commonwealth of Nations
  • Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations
• British Overseas Territories
• English-speaking world
• World Englishes
• English-based creole languages
• List of countries by English-speaking population
• List of languages by total number of speakers
• British Empire
• List of link languages
• Geolinguistics
• Language geography

Footnotes

1. The population figures are based on the sources in List of countries by population, with information as of 23 January 2009^[update] (UN estimates, et al.), and refer to the population of the country and not necessarily to the number of inhabitants that speak English in the country in question.
2. In the United States of America, English is the language of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States and The Federalist Papers and remains the working language of the federal administration. At the state level, some states with large Hispanic populations—such as Arizona, California, Florida, New Mexico, and Texas—provide bilingual legislated notices and official documents in both Spanish and English. Attempts have been made to legislate English as the official language of the federal government of the United States, often imbued with nationalist sentiment such as the proposed English Language Unity Act of 2005 with its controversial ties to immigration policy, but these initiatives have not passed into law, despite an English-only movement whose long history includes: Pennsylvania of the 1750s concerning German; the decade of the 1800s in Louisiana concerning French; the 1890s concerning the use of the Hawaiian language in Hawaii; and from 1880 onward—now formally organized—more than a century of American Indian boarding schools suppressing the use of Native American indigenous language.
3. American Samoa is an unincorporated U.S. territory.
4. Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory.
5. The Cook Islands and Niue are associated states of New Zealand that lack general recognition.
6. Guam is an organized unincorporated territory of the United States
7. Hong Kong is a former British Crown colony (1843–1981) and British Dependent Territory (1981–1997); it is currently a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (1997–present).
8. The Isle of Man is a British Crown dependency.
9. Jersey is a British Crown dependency.
10. The Northern Mariana Islands is a commonwealth in political union with the United States.
11. Pitcairn Islands is a British Overseas Territory.
12. Puerto Rico is, historically and culturally, connected to the Spanish-speaking Caribbean; Spanish is also an official language on the island. Puerto Rico is an unincorporated United States territory referred to as a "Commonwealth".
13. The US Virgin Islands is an insular area of the United States.
14. Guernsey is a British Crown dependency.
15. Christmas Island is an external territory of Australia.
16. Cocos (Keeling) Islands is an external territory of Australia.

References

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