Geography ยท General Awareness

World Languages and Geography

2,195 Questions

World languages and geography explore the distribution of major language families, official languages, and native speakers across different continents. The questions cover linguistic demographics in Africa, Europe, and the Americas. This topic is frequently asked in UPSC, SSC, and State PSC general studies papers.

Official languagesLanguage familiesWidely spoken languagesRegional languagesLinguistic geography

World Languages and Geography Questions

Multiple choice

What is the approximate number of languages that are currently endangered?

  1. 1,000

  2. 2,500

  3. 5,000

  4. 10,000
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

According to UNESCO, there are approximately 5,000 languages that are currently endangered.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is not an example of a language that has undergone convergence?

  1. English and French

  2. Spanish and Portuguese

  3. Chinese and Japanese

  4. Arabic and Hebrew
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Chinese and Japanese are not examples of languages that have undergone convergence. While there are some similarities between the two languages, they are not closely related and have not undergone significant convergence.

Multiple choice

Which classical language has the largest number of speakers today?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Arabic is the classical language with the largest number of speakers today, with over 300 million native speakers.

Multiple choice

Which classical language was once the lingua franca of the Mediterranean region?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Latin was once the lingua franca of the Mediterranean region, and was used by scholars, merchants, and diplomats.

Multiple choice

Which classical language is still used as a liturgical language in some Christian churches?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Latin is still used as a liturgical language in some Christian churches.

Multiple choice

Which classical language is the oldest of the Indo-European languages?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Old Church Slavonic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Sanskrit is the oldest of the Indo-European languages.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the Latin phrase that means 'the language of the gods'?

  1. Lingua Franca

  2. Lingua Latina

  3. Lingua Sancta

  4. Lingua Universalis
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Lingua Sancta is the Latin phrase that means 'the language of the gods'.

Multiple choice

Which classical language is still used as a language of instruction in some universities?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Latin is still used as a language of instruction in some universities.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the Chinese classical language?

  1. Mandarin

  2. Cantonese

  3. Wu

  4. Yue
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Mandarin is the Chinese classical language.

Multiple choice

Which classical language is the language of the Avesta?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Avestan
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Avestan is the language of the Avesta.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is an example of an isolating language?

  1. English

  2. Chinese

  3. Arabic

  4. Nahuatl
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Chinese is an example of an isolating language, as its words typically consist of a single morpheme.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is an example of an agglutinative language?

  1. English

  2. Chinese

  3. Turkish

  4. Inuktitut
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Turkish is an example of an agglutinative language, as its words are formed by adding multiple morphemes together.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is an example of a fusional language?

  1. English

  2. German

  3. Latin

  4. Sanskrit
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

German is an example of a fusional language, as its words have a complex internal structure with morphemes being fused together.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is not a major classical language?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Arabic is not a major classical language, as it is a relatively young language that developed in the 6th century CE.

Multiple choice

Which of the following major classical languages is still spoken today?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Latin

  3. Greek

  4. Hebrew
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Greek is the only major classical language that is still spoken today, with around 13 million native speakers.