Is English spoken in Morocco?

Question

I often come across this question: "Is English spoken in Morocco?" I even answered this question in a short post (Is English widely spoken in Morocco?) on the Desert Morocco Adventure website, but I automatically closed the comment 4 days after the post was published. English is not the second language in the country but is widely spoken by the younger generation. English is an emerging language in the country and is expected to become Morocco's main foreign language in the future, especially in the big cities where it is widely spoken. It is not surprising that you will find many people with a high level of English who work in small businesses, hotels, and restaurants that cater to tourists.

Lianmi · Accepted Answer

Do people speak English in Morroco?

English is taught in school to teenage students by their choice, so everyone knows the basics of the language. The quality of English education is not the best you can find in a country where English is the native language. Aside from the fact that some have the ability to learn languages quickly and others show no interest in other languages, you get a mixed bag of skill levels. Even if they can't speak it well, they can often understand simple English sentences or even sing a song in English thanks to music and movies.

Internet access is available almost everywhere these days and it is convenient for everyone. Many people support the idea of switching from French to English, as it is the most widely used language on the Internet, from programming to case studies.

However, the new generation can tell you that they are learning English online through American broadcasts or just through good conversations with tourists, which is a fact. It is also so universal that they learn it through songs and online streaming services. You often meet people in the country who speak more than 4 languages. It's no surprise that teenagers have a better command of English than older generations, and of course, that's true wherever you go. The more money they have, the more likely they are to speak English.

Morocco is going through major cultural changes and the world is noticing it. People are more westernized in their social values and aspirations. The most important aspect of this change is the language they speak. Moroccans are bilingual by nature. In their daily life, they speak the Berber language and their own version of the Arabic language is called Darija. Classical Arabic and Tamazight are taught here as they are also two official languages. In the north of Morocco, as in the south of the country, you can easily communicate with almost everyone in Spanish. Due to the mix of dialects and their bilingual character, Moroccans speak very fluently.