English in Galicia

ivar · May 29, 2006

I just read something interesting this morning in La Voz de Galicia (local paper) regarding the knowledge of English i Galicia. To make a long article short....

... 3% of people in Galicia speak English fluently.

... 65% of people in Galicia do not even know one word of English.

When that it said, Galician people are known for being very friendly and willing to help if they meet someone is trying to communicate with them and they do not speak a common language.

Anyway, I found this statistic interesting and I have to say that I think it sounds right. This is coming from one that moved to Santiago without knowing much Spanish...

Un saludo,
Ivar

Zohar · May 29, 2006

Ivar;

That statistic is probably right. I had a hard time 3 1/2 years ago when I arrived at A Coroña to join the oil spill response operation after the Prestige accident. I did, however, experience that the people were extremely helpful and WANTED me to understand and to understand me. This is also my experience from my recent walk through Navarra (and part of Rioja). (Especially in small villages).

Great web page, by the way!

Ha en fin kveld!

Peter Robins · May 30, 2006

the online version is at http://www.lavozdegalicia.es/se_socieda ... TO=4812717
As you would expect, there is a large generation gap, with most of those knowing English being under 30.

I also found another article, finding that 20% of Spaniards 'can express themselves' in English.
http://www.lavozdegalicia.es/buscavoz/v ... 0000077198
Again, there is a large generation gap, with twice as many 15-24-year-olds knowing another language as 55+-yr-olds.

paulmack · Jun 16, 2006

I'm sure that you can get by without Spanish in Galicia but having a working knowledge does make it more fun. About a week ago, being able to chat led to lots of free drinks and a lesson on playing the Gaita (bagpipes). Walking the next day with a hangover was not so much fun.

Paul

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