Languages spoken in Mozambique
Africa · Capital: Maputo · Population 33.4 million
The official language of Mozambique is Portuguese. An estimated 27% of the population speaks it as a first or additional language, or roughly 9 million people. After Portuguese, the most widely spoken are Makhuwa at 13% and Ndau at 9.9%. Portuguese belongs to the Indo-European language family. Portuguese is not recorded in any of Mozambique's six neighbours. In total, nine languages are recorded in Mozambique, and their shares add up to 79.7% of the population, which implies the average resident speaks about 0.8 of them.
What languages are spoken in Mozambique?
| Language | Share of population | Status | Estimated speakers |
|---|---|---|---|
| PortugueseIndo-European | 27% | Official | 9 million |
| Makhuwa | 13% | Spoken | 4.3 million |
| NdauNiger-Congo | 9.9% | Spoken | 3.3 million |
| TsongaNiger-Congo | 7.9% | Spoken | 2.6 million |
| LomweNiger-Congo | 6.8% | Spoken | 2.3 million |
| Sena | 4.6% | Spoken | 1.5 million |
| Makhuwa-Meetto | 4.5% | Spoken | 1.5 million |
| RongaNiger-Congo | 3.4% | Spoken | 1.1 million |
| NyanjaNiger-Congo | 2.6% | Spoken | 867,126 |
Percentages are the share of the population that speaks each language, including as a second language, so they add up to well over 100% in multilingual countries. Speaker counts are estimates derived from the percentage and the country's population, not counted figures.
What is the official language of Mozambique?
The official language of Mozambique is Portuguese. Portuguese is spoken by an estimated 27% of the population, or roughly 9 million people, counting both first-language and additional speakers.
Official status comes from Unicode CLDR. It distinguishes languages that are official nationwide, those used as de facto official without being named in law, and those official only in particular regions or territories.
How many people speak Portuguese in Mozambique?
An estimated 27% of Mozambique's 33.4 million people speak Portuguese, which works out at roughly 9 million speakers. That figure is derived from the population and the reported share, and it counts second-language speakers, so it is an estimate rather than a census count.
Key facts about Mozambique
- Capital
- Maputo
- Population
- 33.4 million
- Continent
- Africa
- Area
- 801,590 km²
- Currency
- MZN
- Languages recorded
- 9
- Land borders
- 6
- ISO codes
- MZ / MOZ / 508
Which countries border Mozambique?
Mozambique shares a land border with six countries: Malawi, Eswatini, Tanzania, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. None of them records Portuguese, the most widely spoken language in Mozambique, so the land borders here are also language borders.
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Language shares, population, and official status: Unicode CLDR. Capital, area, borders, and currency: mledoze/countries (ODbL 1.0). Flag image: flagcdn.com. Speaker counts are estimates derived from population and reported share.