Stop sign in Arabic: Thanks for your kind words, JK78.

» rkhen - Thanks for your kind words, JK78.

Thanks for your kind words, JK78. It's great fun to write this column and I'm happy that others are enjoying it as well.

In terms of whether Italian or Spanish is more important, the question is really which is more likely to serve your interests. (I wrote about this issue in some detail in "Just the Faqs, Ma'am" [http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/worl... .) If you're a Renaissance buff, a seminarian with designs on the Vatican, or an admirer of Italian movies, Italian is probably the best choice. If on the other hand you're more interested in American politics, commercial importing of leather goods from Mexico, or Spanish movies, Spanish would be your language.

Spanish clearly commands a greater share of humanity. It's the second-most spoken language in the world by some counts. (Such statistics are fatally flawed, but they have ballpark validity.) However, Italian's single-nation demographic range is misleading. There are important Italian expatriate communities all over the world. I frequently encounter Italian speakers in my peregrinations, and even out here in the Canadian bush I receive Italian-language television and radio. Obviously there are a lot of Italian speakers even here.

I hope you enjoy my FAQ on Chinese, which uploads tomorrow.

Thanks again, JK78

-- posted by rkhen