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The '''Spanish Language''' is a member of the [[Romance language]] family, the group of languages descending from [[Vulgar Latin]], the dialect spoken by the soldiers and provincial officials of the [[Roman Empire]]. Originally spoken in the northern regions of what is now [[Spain]], Spanish also draws some influence from the regional languages of its area. Spanish also draws heavy influence from [[Arabic]], due to the [[Moorish]] [[Umayyad|occupation]] of Spain lasting from 711 to 1492.
Today, the majority of its speakers live outside of Spain, with large numbers in [[Central America|Central]] and [[South America]]. It is one of the most-spoken languages in the [[world]]. It is spoken as a first language by about 350,000,000 people, or by 417,000,000 if non-native speakers are included. The Spanish language is the second-most common language in the [[United States]].
==Distribution==
*[[Spain]]
*Former Spanish colonies in the Carribbean ([[Dominican Republic]], [[Puerto Rico]], [[Cuba]])
*[[Latin America]] (with the exceptions of [[Portuguese]]-speaking [[Brazil]], [[French]]-speaking [[French Guiana]], [[English]]-speaking [[Suriname]], and [[Dutch]]-speaking [[Guyana]])
*Hispanic populations in the [[United States]]
*former Spanish colonies in [[Africa]]
*a distinct dialect is spoken in the [[Philippines]]
[[Category:Languages]]