Discover the Most Difficult Languages in the World

Have you ever wondered which is the most difficult language to speak in the world?

There are 195 countries in the world and about 6,900 different languages are spoken in them, of which 2,197 are spoken in Asia and 230 in Europe. Some languages are easy to learn, and some can be very difficult. Learning a second or third language may seem difficult and even strange in taste, which seems very overwhelming, but sometimes it can be beneficial and beneficial for you. There are also many changes that open up many opportunities and can get you a job and a new career.

Mastering a new language can benefit your brain and good memory as well as help you with better concentration and research also proves this. However, there are some challenges you have to face in learning a new language and they are related to grammar, pronunciation or sometimes remembering the words correctly.

In this blog, we will talk about the most difficult languages to understand and learn. We'll talk about why they're so complicated and what you can expect if you decide to learn a new language.

10 Most Difficult Languages in the World

Now, let;s explore these 10 hardest languages in the world and the challenges associated with them:

1. Mandarin Chinese

Mandarin Chinese, spoken directly by the Chinese, holds the title of the most widely spoken language globally. In addition, it is also a major language in the United States and Singapore. It is spoken by 918 million native and 199 million non-native speakers. Also, it is the main language of Singapore and also spoken in the United Nations. Also known as Putonghua, it originated from the local Beijing dialect. Let us now find out why it is the most difficult language to learn.

Major challenges:

• They use four main tones and one natural tone, and this error can lead to a completely different meaning of the word. For example: ma = mother | ma = numb | ma = horse | ma = scold
• There are over 50,000 characters in Mediterranean and 26 Roman alphabetic roman, but you only need 3,500 characters for basic literacy, there are no verb conjugations.

Tips for Learners

• Mandarin Chinese is a language that has no spaces between words and in this one word gives you multiple meanings. To learn it faster, you need to first learn Chengyu, which are four character phrases, and it is a language that has a history.

2. Arabic

Arabic is spoken in 26 countries in the world, which includes the Middle East, North Africa, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Egypt, and the Islamic community. It has 245 million native speakers of Arabic and 29 million non-native speakers from other countries. Arabic is a written language, when different countries adopt it they use it in their own words and tone which makes it hard to understand for people who are not familiar with Arabic.

Major challenges:

• This is unique among many languages, the Arabic script flows from right to left and does not have a clear difference between upper and lower case letters.
• Pronunciation is also a difficult task and the variation in their shape according to the situation makes it difficult for language learners.

Tips for Learners

• If you are thinking of learning Arabic then focus on Egyptian Arabic first, it has a lot of media and a very easy grammar to understand.

3. Japanese

Japanese is a major East Asian language spoken by 128 million people worldwide and is the main language of Japan. Due to the similar pronunciation of other words, Many consider this language to be the most challenging for learners.You have many reasons to learn this language, such as starting a new career, business, K-pop cultures and if you are interested in animation, then you have a great chance to start a new career in the related field.

Major challenges:

• The Japanese language consists of three writing systems which are Japanese, Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji, making it difficult to learn.
• It changes the entire sentence structure which is based on formality and hierarchy, the hardest part is that it is unnatural to learn its subject, object and verb.

Tips for Learners

• For beginners, learning Hiragana and Katakana is the first and easiest step towards learning Japanese.

4. Korean

With over 80 million speakers, Korean is a major East Asian language spoken in North and South Korea. There are many people in China also who speak Korean, there is a big population of people who speak Korean in the United States, Canada, and Uzbekistan.

Koreans have their own writing system, and that is most difficult to learn. Hangul, which has 19 consonants and 21 vowels, is one such language. The structure of the Korean language differs from many other languages.

Major challenges:

• It has over 7 levels of speech and 70% of academic words are derived from Chinese characters.
• Additionally Korean is not a tone-based language, which means its pronunciation is not based on tone changes.

Tips for Learners

• You can learn the Korean language step by step by focusing on a strong foundation in the basics before tackling harder concepts and if you are passionate about Korean culture, music drama then this can be a powerful motivator to learn this language.

5. Telugu

The Telugu language is one of the hardest languages in the world. Many people in India speak it and it's the main language of south Indians. It is spoken in many states like Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and it is also popular in the Union Territory of Puducherry.

For those who know nothing about Telugu, learning it can be challenging.  It has many verbs and vowels and is more difficult for the English speakers and specially for those who are not familiar with Sanskrit or other popular South Indian languages.

Major challenges:

• This can be the most difficult language for you to learn as it has many difficulties to learn like script and pronunciation which are difficult to follow.
• The Telugu language has more than 60 alphabets in its script syllabus which makes it a complex language to learn.

Tips for Learners

• Using Sandhi rules (word combination conversation) can make it easier for you to learn and speak Telugu.
• To learn Telugu, make it an active part of your life by watching movies and listening to music.

6. Cantonese

The Cantonese language is spoken by over 85 million people in Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong (China), Malaysia, and Chinese communities in Canada and the United States. It has both local and foreign speakers. When we come to the list of the difficult languages then yes we count this language too. Its difficulty is based on Pronunciation, writing, tone, and vocabulary. It also has more tones than Mandarin, which has only four tones.

Major challenges:

• Cantonese has more than 6-9 tones, and its totally depends on the speaker. The meaning of a word depends on the tone you adopt when speaking it.
• Cantonese is very similar to Mandarin language and people spoke this in many countries. Due to differences in tone and vocabulary, it can be hard to find difference between Mandarin and Cantonese language just by listening.

Tips for Learners

• To master Cantonese, begin with Jyutping for pronunciation. Then, learn the Yale Romanization, which is commonly used in Cantonese.

7. Polish

Polish is the official language of Poland and it's known as the hardest language in the world. It is also spoken by Polish communities in many countries around the world, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Brazil.  It also said that this is the second most difficult Slavic language. It is the main language in Poland and its use for government, education, and media.

Major challenges:

• Compared to other languages, Polish has a 14 case system. This means there are many ways to say one word and it is based on how you use them.
• The Polish alphabet includes letters that are not in English, such as sz, cz, 'ż/rz', and h/ch.

Tips for Learners

• If you want to learn Polish, consider living in Poland or contacting local speakers to learn their local language easily, also the Polish system uses perfect vs imperfect verbs which help express the tenses of actions.

8. Finnish

Finnish is a language that people speak in Finland, it is also one of the main languages of Sweden. When you go to learn this language then you will find it very difficult to learn because its grammar and vocabulary are very different from other languages and you will find out that Finnish has no future tense and it's a mix of many languages around the world such as English, Greek and French. This can seem strange and be especially challenging for native English speakers.

Major challenges:

• There are 15 cases in the Finnish language and they are all different from each other, making it more hard for learners.
• The Finnish alphabet has 29 letters and when you learn Finnish you will find that 30% of the words are new and 70% of the words have roots in Proto-Uralic languages.

Tips for Learners

• The Finnish language depend more on word endings and context, also It is related to Indo European languages. Also, its vocabulary has no similarity or connection to English.

9. Russian

The Russian language is part of the East Slavic group which is written in the Cyrillic alphabet, also the official language of Russia. Many people speak it in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. It's a difficult language because of its grammar and six cases. but when you research you will find that Russian is the most spoken language globally and serves as a working language in the United Nations.

Major challenges:

• A hard part of the Russian language is its letters, because it is written in the Cyrillic script. Learning it can be hard for those who are used to the Latin alphabet.
• The Russian Cyrillic alphabet includes a new set of symbols and 6 cases that can be hard to understand and get used to.

Tips for Learners

• If you want to master the Russian language, a few factors can help you. These include the absence of articles, flexible word order, and pronunciation. With regular effort, you can learn Russian easily.

10. Icelandic

The Icelandic language is from Iceland, and it is in the North Atlantic Ocean. This is counted in one of the most hard languages ​​to learn and it is spoken around the world. The meanings and endings of words can change based on gender, number, and case. Many learners got it hard due to its grammar.

Major challenges:

• The Icelandic language is related to the Old Norse and Scandinavian languages.
• The form of a noun in Icelandic can change depending on the subject, object or possessive.

Tips for Learners

• Since the "th" sound is similar in Icelandic and English, learning to pronounce some Icelandic words can sound familiar, making it easier for English speakers.

Final Thoughts

Sometimes learning a new language can be difficult and languages are beyond our expectations because memorizing such a task makes these languages even more difficult. These 10 most distinctive languages hold centuries-old cultural history and identity. Many times you can feel frustrated because understanding their grammar, case, script can be hard, but once you understand their words you find that it's not that hard.

When you learn a new language, you gain a new way to communicate and also new insights into different cultures and people. No matter you wants to connect with locals, begin a new career in abroad, or travel, learning a new language can be very helpful to you. These 10 languages are often seen as the hardest in the world, but they are also incredibly beautiful. 

If you stay patient and work hard, you will discover that you can learn them with ease, making your learning experience even more rewarding.