Spanish is the most widely spoken of all the Romance languages, in terms of number of speakers and number of countries which claim Spanish as the official language. It is spoken by 275 million people in 19 countries from Spain to Costa Rica. It is also spoken in the Balearic and Canary Islands, the United States of America and in parts of the west coast of Africa. A variety of Spanish, called Ladino, is spoken in Turkey and Israel by descendents of Jews who were expelled from Spain in 1492.

Spanish vocabulary stems from Latin, which was introduced to the Iberian peninsula in the 3rd century during the Roman conquest as a dialect, Castilian. In the Christian conquest of the 15th century, all of the kingdoms of Spain were united and the language of Castile became the dominant dialect. Castilian, which is spoken in Spain today, is considered the purest form of Spanish. The Spanish in Spain and Latin American does differ slightly from region to region as the languages of Latin America have evolved since colonization. For example, peach is melocotón in Spain and durazno in Latin America. One notable difference is the inclusion of words from the indigenous languages of Latin America into modern Spanish.

Many of the words that begin with "f" in other Romance languages begin with an "h" in Spanish (hilo, thread; hijo, son). Another distinction in Spanish is the Moorish influence. Many of the words beginning with "al-" are of Moorish descent (alfombra, rug; alfiler, pin; almohada, pillow). Spanish is pronounced phonetically, however pronunciation varies from country to country. This difference is especially prominent in the pronunciation of "z", "s", "c", "ll" and "y."

English words of Spanish origin include cargo, siesta, hacienda, patio, armada, canyon, plaza, rodeo, adobe, vanilla, tornado and embargo.

The following words seem like their English counterparts, but they aren't! If you tell someone you are embarazada, you are really telling them you are pregnant! If you want to go study at the librería, you are headed for the bookstore! If you'd like some nice fábrica for a new dress, you'll be wearing a factory!

In Spain, there are two ways to address someone, familiar and formal. The familiar form of you is tú and verbs used with tú are conjugated in the 2nd person. The formal form of you is usted and verbs used with usted are conjugated in the 3rd person. The familiar form is used with friends or with people who are younger you. The formal form is used with people you don't know or elders.

One marked difference between Castilian and Latin American Spanish is the use of vosotros and ustedes. Vosotros, used only in Spain, is the informal plural form of you and the corresponding verb is conjugated in the 2nd person plural. Ustedes is the formal, plural form of you, however, in Latin America it is used for both the formal and informal address for 2nd person plural but the corresponding verb is conjugated in the 3rd person plural form. For example, "Vosotros estáis felices " and "Ustedes están felices" (You are happy) mean the exact same thing, but the former would only be used in Spain.

While much of the vocabulary in Spanish in recognizable to the English speaker, there are several things that can trick an English speaker trying to learn Spanish. Unlike English words, Spanish nouns, adjectives, pronouns, and articles have a gender assigned to them. For instance, casa (house) is feminine and libro (book) is masculine; bonita (pretty) is feminine and bonito (pretty) is masculine. This concept can be difficult to get used to because it simply does not exist in English.

The pronunciation of certain letters in Spanish can also be difficult. The most notable letter that if difficult for English speakers is rr, which is trilled. The letters b and v are indistinguishable. The letter h is silent.

In Spanish, there are two verbs for "to be, " ser and estar. Ser is used for things that are permanent, identifying yourself or others, and describing occupations. Estar is used to describe more temporary things and to indicate location. For example, Elena es actriz (Elena is an actress) and ¿Dónde está Elena? (Where is Elena?) use ser and estar, respectively.

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