Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

's official and predominant language is Spanish. The variety spoken there, Costa Rican Spanish, is a form of

Central American Spanish Central American Spanish ( es, español centroamericano or ) is the general name of the Spanish language dialects spoken in Central America. More precisely, the term refers to the Spanish language as spoken in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, ...

. Costa Rica is a linguistically diverse country and home to at least five living local indigenous languages spoken by the descendants of pre-Columbian peoples: Maléku, Cabécar,

Bribri The Bribri are an Indigenous people in eastern Costa Rica and northern Panama. Today, most Bribri people speak the Bribri language or Spanish. There are varying estimates from government officials of the group's population. Estimates of the t ...

, Guaymí, and Buglere. Immigration has also brought people and languages from various countries around the world. Along the Atlantic Ocean in

Limón Province Limón (), commonly known as Puerto Limón, is a district, the capital city and main hub of Limón province, as well as of the Limón canton in Costa Rica. It is the seventh largest city in Costa Rica, with a population of over 55,000, and is ho ...

, inhabited primarily by Afro-Caribs, an

English-based creole language An English-based creole language (often shortened to English creole) is a creole language for which English was the ''lexifier'', meaning that at the time of its formation the vocabulary of English served as the basis for the majority of the creo ...

called Mekatelyu or Patua is spoken to varying degrees, as is English; many older Limonenses speak English as their native language. The Quakers community, who settled in

Monteverde Monteverde is the twelfth canton of the Puntarenas province of Costa Rica. It is located in the Cordillera de Tilarán mountain range. Roughly a four-hour drive from the Central Valley, Monteverde is one of the country's major ecotourism des ...

in the early 1950s, speaks an older dialect of English, using ''

thou The word ''thou'' is a second-person singular pronoun in English. It is now largely archaic, having been replaced in most contexts by the word ''you'', although it remains in use in parts of Northern England and in Scots (). ''Thou'' is the ...

'' instead of ''

you In Modern English, ''you'' is the second-person pronoun. It is grammatically plural, and was historically used only for the dative case, but in most modern dialects is used for all cases and numbers. History ''You'' comes from the Proto- ...

''.

Costa Rican Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) developed in the United States and Canada, but has spread around the world. Local varieties have developed in many countries, but there is little research on which should be considered dialects of ASL (such as Bolivi ...

is also spoken by the deaf community, and Costa Rican Spanish slang is known as "pachuco". Since 2015 Costa Rica is officially known as a multi-ethnic and pluralistic republic. The greatest advance in this respect came with the amendment of Article 76 of the Constitution of Costa Rica, which now states: ''"Spanish is the official language of the Nation. However, the State will oversee the maintenance and cultivation of indigenous national languages."''

Living indigenous languages

Currently, in Costa Rica, there are six indigenous languages that are still used by their respective populations. All of them belonging to the Chibcha language family. Those languages are: *

Maléku language The Maléku Jaíka language, also called Malecu, Maleku, Guatuso, Watuso-Wétar, and Guetar, is an Indigenous American language in Costa Rica. Classification The Maléku Jaíka language is a member of the Votic branch of the Chibchan language f ...

: Also known as Guatuso, spoken by around 800 people in north-eastern

Alajuela Province Alajuela () is a province of Costa Rica. It is located in the north-central part of the country, bordering Nicaragua to the north. It also borders the provinces of Heredia to the east, San José to the south, Puntarenas to the southwest and G ...

. This language, along with Rama, belongs to the Votic branch of the Chibchan language family. * Cabécar language: Spoken in the Talamanca mountain range and in the southern Pacific region, Cabécar is the sister language to Bribri in the Isthmic branch of the Chibchan language family. * Bribri language: Bribri is spoken on the Atlantic slope of the country, including

, the Talamanca mountain range, and the south Pacífic region. Together with Cabécar, it forms the Viceitic subgroup of Chibchan languages. *

Guna language The Kuna language (formerly Cuna, and in the language itself Guna), spoken by the Kuna people of Panama and Colombia, belongs to the Chibchan language family. History The Kuna were living in what is now Northern Colombia and the Darién Provin ...

: Guna is the language of native tribes in the area of the

Cartago Province Cartago (), which means Carthage in Spanish, is a province of central Costa Rica. It is one of the smallest provinces, however probably the richest of the Spanish Colonial era sites and traditions. Geography It is located in the central part ...

located in the center of Costa Rica. It is also part of the Isthmic branch of the

Chibchan languages The Chibchan languages (also Chibchan, Chibchano) make up a language family indigenous to the Isthmo-Colombian Area, which extends from eastern Honduras to northern Colombia and includes populations of these countries as well as Nicaragua, Costa ...

, as well as Cabécar. *

Guaymí language Guaymí, or Ngäbere, also known as Movere, Chiriquí, and Valiente, is spoken by the indigenous Ngäbe people in Panama and Costa Rica. The people refer to themselves as ''Ngäbe'' (pronounced ) and to their language as ''Ngäbere'' . The Ng� ...

: Spoken in various indigenous territories to the southeast of

Puntarenas Province Puntarenas () is a province of Costa Rica. It is located in the western part of the country, covering most of Costa Rica's Pacific Ocean coast, and it is the largest province in Costa Rica. Clockwise from the northwest it borders on the provinces ...

, bordering

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

. Together with Buglere, it belongs to the Guaymic subgroup of the

. Also known as Ngäbere or Movere. *

Buglere language Buglere, also known as Bugle, Murire and Muoy, is a Chibchan language of Panama closely related to Guaymi. There are two dialects, Sabanero and Bokotá (Bogota), spoken by the Bokota people The Bokota, also called Bogotá or Bugleres, are an ...

: Spoken in the same territories as Guaymí, the language to which it is most closely related. It is also known as Bocotá.

Extinct and formerly spoken languages

Map of indigenous languages in Costa Rica

Prior to the 9th century, only languages of the Chibchan family were spoken in Costa Rica. The extinct

Huetar language Huetar (Güetar) is an extinct Chibchan language of Costa Rica that was spoken by the Huetar people. It served as the ''lingua franca'' for precolonial peoples in central Costa Rica, and went extinct in the 17th century. Only a few words in the l ...

, probably affiliated with the Chibchan family, served as the ''lingua franca'' for the interior of Costa Rica and was considered by the Spanish upon their arrival to be the "general language" of all Costa Rica. Historically, the range of the still-living

Rama language Rama is one of the indigenous languages of the Chibchan family spoken by the Rama people on the island of Rama Cay and south of lake Bluefields on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. Other indigenous languages of this region include Miskito and S ...

also extended south into northern Costa Rica, where the Maléku language was also spoken. Boruca, an Isthmic Chibchan language, was formerly spoken across the southern Pacific slope while

and Cabécar speakers inhabited the northern Atlantic slope. An unknown language, known only as the ''lengua de Paro'', was also spoken on the western coast of the

Gulf of Nicoya The Gulf of Nicoya ( es, Golfo de Nicoya) is an inlet of the Pacific Ocean. It separates the Nicoya Peninsula from the mainland of Costa Rica, and encompasses a marine and coastal landscape of wetlands, rocky islands and cliffs. The first Spanish ...

. During the 9th century, speakers of the now-extinct

Oto-Manguean language The Oto-Manguean or Otomanguean languages are a large family comprising several subfamilies of indigenous languages of the Americas. All of the Oto-Manguean languages that are now spoken are indigenous to Mexico, but the Manguean branch of the ...

Chorotega controlled most of northeast Costa Rica. Other Mesoamerican peoples penetrated Costa Rican territory. The

Nahua The Nahuas () are a group of the indigenous people of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. They comprise the largest indigenous group in Mexico and second largest in El Salvador. The Mexica (Aztecs) were of Nahua ethnicity, a ...

speakers known as Nicarao, named after their cacique of the same name, lived in enclaves in

Guanacaste Province Guanacaste () is a province of Costa Rica located in the northwestern region of the country, along the coast of the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Alajuela Province to the east, and Puntarenas Province to the southeast. I ...

as well as near the delta of the Sixaola River, speaking a dialect closer to nuclear

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller ...

in Mexico than to the

Pipil Pipil may refer to: *Nahua people of western El Salvador *Pipil language Nawat (academically Pipil, also known as Nicarao) is a Nahuan language native to Central America. It is the southernmost extant member of the Uto-Aztecan family. It was spo ...

of El Salvador and Nicaragua. At the beginning of the 21st century, two Costa Rican indigenous languages became extinct. Térraba, a variety of the Téribe language, was spoken in the indigenous reserve of Térraba in the southeast of Puntarenas province. Until its recent extinction, Boruca was spoken in the Boruca and Curré reserves in the southeast of

Puntarenas province Puntarenas () is a province of Costa Rica. It is located in the western part of the country, covering most of Costa Rica's Pacific Ocean coast, and it is the largest province in Costa Rica. Clockwise from the northwest it borders on the provinces ...

European languages

According to the Education First international school, Costa Rica ranks highly in English-language proficiency in Central & South America. It is the most widely spoken foreign language, and in addition to being a compulsory subject in school it is the most common foreign language exam taken for entry into tertiary education This language also has the support and promotion of dozens of cultural institutions founded by one of the most important English-speaking communities in Central America and made up of more than: 20,000 Americans, 10,000 Canadians, 6,000 British and their descendants living in the country, who use the language on a daily basis in parallel with Spanish. Also noteworthy is the fact that in the northwestern region of the Province of Puntarenas, in the communities of

and Santa Elena,

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

speak the typical English of their community, using "thou" instead of "you" and other characteristics typical of the Quaker dialect. In addition, in many other parts of the country there are

Mennonite Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...

communities from the United States, where English is also used by the population.. One of the largest German communities in Central America is present in the country, with more than 2,000 Germans currently living in Costa Rica. Not counting almost 2000 Swiss, 2000 Mennonites of predominantly German descent and more than 600 Austrians, making up a large German-Costa Rican community that practices and promotes the use of the German language in the nation. Also noteworthy is the great German migration that took place in Costa Rica during the 19th and 20th centuries, 22 inheriting the country a rich sociocultural and economic contribution. Currently, thousands of Costa Ricans are descendants of these migrants and the Goethe Institut has founded dozens of cultural institutions and even educational centers such as the Humbolt Schule and churches that promote the spread of German in the country.Sauter, Franz.
Los alemanes en Costa Rica
'

La Nación ''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina. Its motto is: "''La Nac ...

. 1999. In addition, in the north of the country, in the Huetar North Region, in Sarapiquí and in San Carlos there are communities founded, colonized or populated by German and Mennonite migrants where their descendants still use German or use a dialect from Old German called Plautdeutsch.Berth, Christian ''La inmigración alemana en Costa Rica, migración, crisis y cambio entre 1920 y 1950 entrevistas con descendientes alemanes.''Instituto de Historia Contemporánea de Hamburgo Costa Rica has the largest Italian community in Central America, with more than 2,500 Italians living in the country. In addition, almost 2,000 Swiss also reside in Costa Rica. This, and the many descendants of the Italian migratory flows of the 19th century, create a large Italian-speaking community with institutions and cultural alliances, such as the Dante Alighieri Institute, that promote the teaching of the Italian language. In addition, in the San Vito area and other communities in the southeast of the nation, Italian is spoken, due to the Italian agricultural colonization that took place in these areas and was promoted by the government. Currently, it is also spoken a dialect resulting from Hispanic influence on the descendants of Italian migrants and Italian is taught as a compulsory subject in regional public education. Weizmann H. (1987) ''Emigrantes a la conquista de la selva'' (2.ª ed.)Comité de la Sociedad Cultural "Dante Alighieri" de San Vito. Costa Rica. In the country, one of the most promoted and popular foreign languages is French. It is noteworthy that Costa Rica has the largest French-speaking community in Central America, being the only Central American country that is an observer Member of the International Organization of La Francophonie, and with more than: 2,000 French, 10,000 Canadians, 2,000 Swiss, and 200 Haitians. In addition, during the nineteenth century the largest migratory flow of French in Central America was registered, directed towards Costa Rica, which has contributed a large number of French-speaking descendants to the country and has produced the creation of many institutions and cultural alliances and even a school that carry out a great promotion and dissemination of French learning in the population. Also, French is a compulsory subject taught in many schools and in the Third Cycle of Basic Education, it is taught in countless schools and can be chosen as a subject to take the baccalaureate exam.

Asian languages

In the 19th century, important groups of

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

emigrated to Costa Rica and settled mainly in the provinces of Limón, Puntarenas, and Guanacaste, preserving their language,

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...

, depending on their origin. Currently, there is a constant migratory flow of Chinese and their descendants, who settled in the country use their language on a daily basis, living in Costa Rica about 45,000 Chinese and representing one of the largest Chinese communities in Central America.Soto Quirós, Ronald ''Percepciones y actitudes políticas con respecto a la minoría china en Costa Rica: 1897–1911'' In this way, several cultural and even religious institutions and alliances have been created that promote Chinese culture and the spread of the Chinese language in the country. Also, it highlights the large number of educational centers that teach Mandarin as a compulsory subject. Another language with a notable presence is Arabic, used by more than 200 Lebanese, 200 Emiratis, and a large number of Lebanese, Arab and 19th century immigrants from the Middle East who live in the country. Furthermore, Costa Rica has one of the largest Muslim communities in Central America, which uses this language as its

liturgical language A sacred language, holy language or liturgical language is any language that is cultivated and used primarily in church service or for other religious reasons by people who speak another, primary language in their daily lives. Concept A sacre ...

. There are dozens of cultural institutions in the nation that spread the Arabic language and culture, such as the Lebanese House. The

Hebrew language Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

is also used as a liturgical language by the Jewish Costa Rican community, one of the largest in Central America, and it is also used by more than 1000 Israelis and their descendants who live in the country.Migraciones Judías en Centroamérica y el Caribe: Proyección Epidemiológica de la Enfermedad de Gaucher
Academia Biológica Digital This language is also promoted by Zionist institutes present in the nation. The large number of Jews living in Costa Rica derives from isolated migratory processes, such as the great Polish immigration or the entry of many Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews to the territory, bringing with it the use of Hebrew as a religious language.Guzmán Stein, Miguel
La migración sefardita en Costa Rica y la lapidaria fúnebre como fuente de investigación de una comunidad inédita
V Congreso Centroamericano de Historia. 19 de julio de 2000.

References

Ethnologue report for Costa Rica
* ttp://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/AXL/amsudant/costa_rica.htm Costa Rica L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde {{North America topic, Languages of

Costa Rican culture Society of Costa Rica