Some studies have posed this question and reached the same conclusion.
When learning a new language, you may get the impression that native speakers can articulate sentences much faster than your brain can process them. Surely, you don’t speak a new language as quickly as your native tongue, right? Rest assured, this is not necessarily due to your language skills being inferior or your linguistic relativity theory – some languages are indeed “faster” than others.
Of course, speech speed can vary from person to person. Some individuals tend to speak slowly, while others may rattle off words at breakneck speed. Similarly, most people will adjust their speaking pace depending on the context, their mood, etc.
However, one of the most widely accepted methods of studying language speed is by measuring the number of syllables per second. Many linguistic studies have examined this metric, and several researchers have come to the same conclusion: Japanese is the fastest language.
Japanese is the fastest language.
A 2011 study by researchers at the University of Lyon analyzed seven different languages and ranked them based on syllables per second. Japanese topped the list with 7.84 syllables per second, followed closely by Spanish (7.82 syllables per second), French (7.18 syllables per second), Italian (6.99 syllables per second), English (6.19 syllables per second), German (5.97 syllables per second), and Mandarin (5.18 syllables per second).
Interestingly, the perceived speed of a language may also relate to the amount of information it can encode.
Another study from the University of Lyon in 2019 examined 17 different languages across Europe and Asia in terms of information per syllable. Although Japanese appears to be spoken quickly, it does not contain as much information in each syllable. Perhaps researchers are also exploring another aspect: that faster spoken languages aim to convey more meaning in sentences.
“We found compelling evidence that some languages are spoken faster than others (for example, speakers of Japanese and Spanish produce about 50% more syllables than speakers of Vietnamese and Thai). Additionally, some languages can ‘pack’ more information into each syllable due to their phonology and grammar (for instance, English has about 11 times more syllable types than Japanese),” Dan Dediu, co-author of the 2019 study, stated in a press release.
Some languages can indeed be “faster” than others.
An older study from the 1960s compared the speaking speeds of six Japanese speakers and six American English speakers, concluding that there was no significant difference in speaking speed between the two groups.
It is noteworthy that these linguistic studies have focused on European and East Asian languages while overlooking the thousands of other diverse languages that exist around the world. While it is true that nearly half of the world’s population speaks one of the ten most common languages as their mother tongue, our planet is home to many fascinating and unique languages that can challenge every assumption.
The 7 Fastest Spoken Languages
1. Japanese
Japanese is the fastest spoken language, with a rate of 7.84 syllables per second. Japanese is often spoken at such speed due to its unique syllable structure and the compact nature of its words. For example, the word “thank you” in Japanese is “arigatou”, containing fewer syllables than its English equivalent.
2. Spanish
Spanish closely follows Japanese, with a speed of 7.82 syllables per second. Compared to English, Spanish tends to be spoken faster.
3. French
French comes in just below Spanish with a speed of 7.18 syllables per second. Although slightly slower than Spanish and Japanese, French can still be spoken quickly. For instance, the word “restaurant” in French resembles its English counterpart but is articulated with fewer syllables.
4. Italian
Italian is relatively slower compared to Spanish and French, with a speed of 6.99 syllables per second. However, it is still faster than English in many cases. The word “ciao” in Italian (hello/goodbye) is a concise example with fewer syllables than its English equivalent.
5. English
English has a speed of 6.19 syllables per second. Compared to some of the languages mentioned, English tends to have more syllables in its words. For example, the word “television” in English has more syllables than “television” in Spanish.
6. German
German has a speed of 5.97 syllables per second. German often features longer and more complex words compared to English. For instance, “krankenhaus” (hospital) in German contains more syllables than its English counterpart.
7. Mandarin
Mandarin ranks as the slowest among the seven fastest languages, with a low speed of 5.18 syllables per second. The slower pace of Mandarin is partly due to its tonal nature and the use of characters instead of an alphabet, making each word more complex.
