Italian loses importance but remains top foreign language of choice other than English

The Maltese are less keen than other Europeans on their children learning Chinese, Spanish and French and more likely to stress the learning of English and Italian.

When asked which two languages are important for children to learn for their future, 91% of respondents mentioned English, 30% mentioned Italian, 5% mentioned French, and 4% mentioned Spanish.

Only 2% of Maltese consider Chinese an important language for children to learn, in contrast to 11% of all EU citizens.

This emerges from a Eurobarometer survey on languages.

While 13% of all EU citizens think that Spanish is important for their children’s future, only 4% of Maltese think so. Europeans are also keener on the importance of French for their children’s future (12%).

But the Maltese remain considerably keener on the importance of Italian considered important by just 1% of EU citizens and English considered important by 85%.

Compared to 2012, the percentage of Maltese who mentioned Italian has dropped by 18 points, and those who mentioned French have dropped by 16 points. The percentage who thinks Spanish is important for children to learn has increased by a single point.

Maltese much more fluent in English than European average

The survey also reveals that 86% of Maltese residents speak English fluently, and 51% are proficient in Italian. These figures are significantly higher than the EU averages, where 47% speak English fluently and only 3% can have a conversation in Italian. Additionally, the survey shows that 13% of Maltese can speak French fluently, while only 4% can converse in German and Spanish.

Compared to a similar survey conducted by Eurobarometer in 2012, the percentage of Maltese who speak English fluently has declined by 3 points, and those proficient in Italian has dropped by five points. Conversely, the percentage of those who speak Spanish has increased by three points, and those who can speak French has increased by two points.

The survey also indicates that the percentage of Maltese who consider Maltese as their mother tongue has decreased by six points, from 97% to 91%. Meanwhile, the percentage who consider English as their mother tongue has increased by one point.

The survey also indicates that 76% of Maltese agree that everyone in the EU should speak at least one additional language, and 68% believe improving language skills should be a policy priority.

Maltese and English are both taught from the early years in Malta, and both are official languages of the country. Students are expected to learn a foreign language of choice at secondary school.