Do you speak English?

Most children are taught English in school. Last two times I was in Sweden, I always asked in my pathetic Swedish if they spoke English. It was one of those survival phrases I memorized. IMO it is not patronizing, at all, and was always well received by the native speakers who mostly are fluent in English, especially anyone under the age of 50.

I travel a lot and I always learn at least the basic niceties in each country. "Hello, please, thank you, where is the .....". Usually that's enough to get the other person to respond in English because they know that's the language I speak. If they don't speak English and continue in their own language, then I resort to looking up words or just moving on. In a stressful situation, like trying to find the correct train platform, or trying to figure out if the upcoming stop is where I should get off, then I will approach people and ask if they speak English. I have never noticed anyone getting offended by that question.

I find your question a little surprising. After living in Sweden for two months, I would think that you've picked up the cultural nuances particular to that country. People in some countries are a bit more hesitant to connect with strangers, and people in other countries just jump right in and start engaging.

I read somewhere that a better option to asking "Do you speak English?" is to ask "Is it OK if I speak English?" The response I get is usually "Of course!"

I don't speak English. Instead I speak American-- which is like English but with a presumptuous overconfidence and an evangelical felicity. Some find it cloying-- particularly those from Akron Ohio.

I read somewhere that a better option to asking "Do you speak English?" is to ask "Is it OK if I speak English?" The response I get is usually "Of course!"

I agree with Mary (roubrat) - I found that approach worked especially well in the Netherlands. I sensed a number of people were rather irritated with the usual "do you speak English?" (Of course you would greet people in their own language first and in many cases they will begin to use English before you even need to ask if it's okay).

Never been to Sweden. But in other countries, I always ask, considering it's always better to err on the side of politeness. I dont think it's rude or implying that they dont know English, as in "of course we all do". But I note, that you have to consider the context. The person you're speaking to doesn't always know why you're approaching them. You could be asking for money, a date, directions, or to sign a petition. And experience says that most American travelers assume "some English" means "all English" and start without prep, rapid-firing convoluted questions and slang at them. So the body language might be wariness not anger. Plus, even if they do speak English, they are not required to speak it to you.

And I like Mary's approach.

Thanks great responses so far!

Most children are taught English in school.

That's true for native Swedes, but most of the people in the service sector, who are the people I mostly interact with in Sweden, are immigrants who did not grow up in the Swedish education system thus it's not a given they speak perfect english if at all.

It is very expected, and the reaction you mention is very common because essentially what most people infer when you ask that question is "what do you think I am, uneducated?

Yes I think you have very well communicated my worry (better than me haha) when I ask "do you speak English", I don't want to insult people but at the same time I want to be courteous.

I find your question a little surprising. After living in Sweden for two months, I would think that you've picked up the cultural nuances particular to that country.

Sweden is not so much the "open book" as some other countries, society here is quite conservative, many of my initial impressions are upended the more time I spend here.

I read somewhere that a better option to asking "Do you speak English?" is to ask "Is it OK if I speak English?" The response I get is usually "Of course!"

Thanks Mary, I like that, I think I might try it next time!

Although I have long lived in Texas, I was born and raised in Boston and have a very strong Boston working class accent.

Some people might disagree as to whether or not I speak English

I went to Hart Lane the other day and I had to spell out Hart for the bus driver because he could not understand my haaaarrrrt. I have gotten used to explaining that I have a Boston accent qnd spelling out some words like park , etc.

Many Hispanics in Central Texas do not speak any English or have limited English. They let me know when they do not understand. I don't have to ask.

“I read somewhere that a better option to asking "Do you speak English?" is to ask "Is it OK if I speak English?" The response I get is usually "Of course!"”

This! A 100% this!

Wait a minute.
Is everyone implying that you start the interaction with a language question?

What happened to first saying Hello and Excuse me in the local language before jumping to the English question?

Americans are known for being direct, but it can come off as being rude. I witnessed two restaurant employees flip out yesterday when an American came up while they were conferring and ask in English where she could wash her hands. No bonjour, no excusez-moi. Nothing. One waiter dismissively motioned the direction of the restroom with no words. They both said the woman had been rude.

No, what people are saying is that you shouldn’t ask if the other party speaks English, but rather ask if it’s okay that you speak English. But of course, you only ask this after you’ve said hello and excuse me first. .

Good catch Bets, I always start with the ubiquitous "Hej!" in Sweden, but that's as far as it goes over here, much different from France or even other parts of Europe. Here they are very informal, even more so than in the USA, here there are no titles and you never refer to someone by their surname, everyone is automatically on first name basis with everyone, even if you meet them for the first time. My Swedish professor insists I call her by the first name. It takes a while to get used to, not sure if I totally have.

I'm not implying that, Bets. I usually start with a greeting in the local language and then depending on the language, I can usually fumble my way through 2-3 sentences before I get tripped up.

We were in rural southwest Belgium today. For a while, it seemed like every road we were routed to was closed. Finally, we stopped for help. We already knew that everyone speaks French and very few have any English at all. A couple folks patiently tried to help us. One woman could say right, left and that was about it. They kept apologizing and asking if maybe we could speak German?or Dutch? I was trying to convey to them I really appreciated their help and it’s ME, that should be apologizing. They could speak multiple languages and me? I know about 20 words in a handful of languages and that’s it!

I do try to greet people with “Hello” in their language and then say “English”? In an apologetic tone.

After a greeting, the reason to ask someone if they speak English is it lets them prepare for it. Even is someone speaks English fairly well, it throws them off when people just start rattling off about something. It is rather rude. Even I like to be asked, whether in German or in English. It gets my brain switched into that direction.

On the Camino, I was shocked at how often the Germans as well as Americans, didn't greet the staff or even attempt to speak a few words in Spanish. One can at least order a cafe con leche, por favor, without a lot of practice.

Get a good translation app for your phone and learn how to use it. It is rather easy and saves a lot of grief. I enjoyed watching the S. Koreans on the Camino. They used their ap to study the menus, typed in what they wanted, translated it, and held it up for the staff to read. Everyone was happy. I used mine a lot too and staff in Spanish hotels, restaurants, pharmacies, taxis, etc. use it also.

I and all the people from all the other countries don't have time to learn how to say "do you speak english" in 24+ major languages and 200 minor languages of Europe,

Funnily enough, most of my trips don't encompass 200 (or even 24) languages. I tend to go fewer places on any given trip. Therefore I am able to master the phrases in the (many fewer) language(s) I need.

Just got back from Quebec City, where French is primary. Consistently, servers etc would greet me with "Bon Jour, hello." Initially I would gamely respond with my few well-practiced French words, and then default to "desole'", apologizing and asking if they spoke English. What I figured out is their initial greeting was to ask me which language to use; if I responded in French I was telling them to continue (and I was immediately lost.) So, I definitely agree to start with greeting in their language, but the sooner I admit my language limits, the less of their time I waste. My taxi driver truly only knew about as many English words as I did French, so Google Translate was a life saver as we chatted away.

I have been navigating France and German-speaking Switzerland with a rudimentary grasp of some of the language which leads me to the inevitable “Do you speak English?” question, but I ask it in French or German.

Start with a greeting in the language: “Guten Morgen”

Then I say “Ich spreche nur ein Bisschen Deutsch. Sprechen Sie Englische?“

I will get either a positive response, “Nein,” or “A little bit.” No cold shoulder and I can work with a few more words or phrases if need be. Perhaps to start in Swedish to demonstrate an effort?

Also, learning “I am sorry, I don’t speak _______” in the language is helpful when someone approaches you with a question in their language,

In France I did/ do ask most of the time in French, (Vous parlez Anglais ?), but not always. Those times I started automatically with English. In Sweden I would not ask. Neither in Holland, Norway or Denmark. I did ask in Poland on visits to Warsaw, Torun, Krakow, Gdansk, and Chelmno near Torun, but but in the border towns right across the Oder I saw most of the Poles engaged in the service industry spoke Polish, English and German. In those instances I spoke German with them.

What is interesting is in one instance in France I asked if the taxi driver (not in Paris) spoke English , to which he gives me the usual answer, "a little" then he continues talking in French, regardless if I understand it or not, which I concluded .....forget asking any other questions in English since, obviously, the guy really does not want to speak English anyway, and rather than have him bear the linguistic embarrassment, I should do that with my limited French.

My only experience in Sweden re: language is pretty dated, ie 1971, so dated as not to be relevant nowadays. Then, if the older Swedish person , ie, obviously, from the war generation, didn't know English, I asked if he spoke German. It worked twice.

I live in Hungary now. I am taking Hungarian lessons and know with absolute certainty that I will never be able to participate in a conversation in Hungarian. Fortunately, in Budapest, English is common. Something about a country of 10 million and an obscure language and a desire to participate in the larger world I presume.

I am always faced with 2 options: jó napot or good afternoon. Hunharian shows a bit of respect but will lead to a response in Hungarian which just won't work. English tends to go more smoothly so my usual start is in English if it is someone I need to communicate with; for a passing greeting on the street i will use Hungarian.

Among my friends are Hungarians, Asians, Eastern Europeans, and a few Brits. So, maybe 6 languages, really 7 because I don't understand one of the Brits. Shop keepers and service providers and sales staff come from all over the world too, so English is their common communication tool too.

The Hungarian people are great. They have, 100% of the time, expressed their understanding of how difficult the language is and don't mind English. No nationslistc language pride thing going on at the street level. just a desire to communicate and accommodate. In government affairs it's a total different story. I am taking Hungarian lessons as part of my negotiated residency permit anf citizenship requires a high level of proficiency.

So far, I have visited countries with 10 different languages. I enjoyed learning greetings and basic phrases in 7 of those languages and I could read signs and menus pretty well in 3 of those. It improves my enjoyment of the country to do that. I have had multiple experiences where the person I was interacting with either could not speak any English or chose not to. We were able to communicate successfully using bits and bobs of words, gestures, Google Translate or some combination of these. I don't know if I have just been lucky, but I have not been in a situation where I picked up that the other person was offended. Many times I have asked the other person "do you speak English," or just "English?" in their language.

I do like Mary's suggestion and will definitely use that in the future. (I think this came up in a thread addressing speaking English in The Netherlands).

There is no single correct answer because it is very difficult to offend some people and very difficult not to offend others. My plan is to be as polite and engaging as I can. So far it is working for me.

I’m in Croatia now and like Mr. E have been taking language lessons. I always start off with a greeting - dobro jutro or dobar dan. They can tell from my few words I am American. Some will answer in English. Some will continue in Croatian when I immediately tell them I am studying Croatian please speak slowly. This has been working for me so far. My husband is nearby to help if need be.

A quick story. We were in Quebec a few years ago and I was looking at a raincoat in a small boutique. I said to my husband, in Croatian, it is very expensive. Well, the saleswoman answered me in Croatian. So, you never know who speaks what language!

really 7 because I don't understand one of the Brits

LOL!

The more I am in Sweden the more I notice the whole "everyone speaks
perfect English in Sweden" thing is a bit of a fallacy.

While it's true that "everybody" speaks English is a fallacy, a very large percentage of Swedes do speak English.

In 2012, the European Union commissioned the Eurobarometer 386 study in which almost 27,000 Europeans were interviewed face-to-face about their language abilities. The study found that 86% of Swedes could speak English well enough to have a conversation in the language.

Sweden is one of the exceptions to the fallacy. Others are Denmark (86%) and Netherlands (90%), all small language group. They have a large percent of population who speak at least one other language in addition to their mother tongue. With so few of them, no one is going to learn their language, so they have to learn other's.

On the other end of the spectrum, large language groups tend to have more people learning their language, and fewer of their people speak other languages.

Thirteen percent of the European population speaks English, so only 39% of them speak a 2nd language. Of course, English is not a 2nd language for most of them. Similarly, Italian and Spanish, with 13% and 8% of the European speakers have only 38% and 45% 2nd language speakers and only 34% and 22% English speaker respectively. French (12% of speakers) does a little better with 51% 2nd language speakers and 39% English speakers.

German speakers are a bit unusual, maybe because they more commerce oriented, but they are 16% of the European population, and 66% speak a 2nd language, with 56% of them speaking English.

This morning alone in Vienna I’ve asked two people in English - Do you speak English?. I always get the polite “yes” but everyone looks at me like - Duh, lady, don’t you know we all learn it from school? For 16 years now this has been my experience….

Emily, sorry the Wieners aren't nicer about it. Locals are much more relaxed here.

When I first moved to Stockholm, I would ask, ”Hej. Pratar du engelska?” and I frequently got the ”duh, of course” kind of response you describe. I started attempting to initiate each conversation in Swedish. I would usually get a response in English as it was painfully obvious that my Swedish was terrible. I considered it a real breakthrough when I got to the point that people would answer me back in Swedish instead of immediately responding in English. When I needed to speak in English I would sometimes say, ”Forlåt, jag pratar inte bra svenska. Jag behover prata engelska.” (sorry, I don’t speak Swedish well. I need to speak English).

I rarely ran into many people who didn’t speak English, but it may be different in Skövde. Besides starting English in the first grade, movies and television shows in Sweden are always in the original language with Swedish subtitles. The exception is programs for very young children which are dubbed. I actually found the prevalence of English made it more difficult to learn Swedish.

Fascinating hearing from everyone, thank you so much for your help. It was very interesting to see others have the similar experiences or hesitancies asking "do you speak English?" while living or traveling in Europe.

While it's true that "everybody" speaks English is a fallacy, a very large percentage of Swedes do speak English. In 2012, the European Union commissioned the Eurobarometer 386 study in which almost 27,000 Europeans were interviewed face-to-face about their language abilities. The study found that 86% of Swedes could speak English well enough to have a conversation in the language.

Hi Lee, I appreciate you finding these statistics however they are over a decade old, the makeup of Sweden (and much of Europe) has changed a lot in the last 10 years, especially with the 2015 migrant crisis, this was explained to me by Swedish colleagues. Now you find many in the service sector are foreign born from Asia, the Middle East, or Africa... waiters, cooks, amazon drivers, pharmacy workers etc. basically all the tough jobs native Swedes don't want to do. These immigrants did not grow up in the Swedish education system so they were not taught English from a young age if it all. My colleagues mentioned that the most popular foreign language being studied in Sweden is the native language Swedish, not English as the rest of Europe.

I rarely ran into many people who didn’t speak English, but it may be different in Skövde. Besides starting English in the first grade, movies and television shows in Sweden are always in the original language with Swedish subtitles.

Laura thanks for your insight, but as was explained to me by local Swedes, Sweden demographically is a very different place from 10 years ago. Sweden is also a very segregated country so it really depends on what neighborhoods you are visiting, I noticed this a lot in Malmo, you will find English more prevalent in the parts of town inhabited mostly by native born Swedes.

Interesting thread! We go to Mexico City in a few months where I have read that many locals ( those not working in the tourist industry), don’t speak English. I am now trying to learn the niceities in Spanish. Lord help me, I am terrible at learning languages because I don’t have a good memory.

I think one's language abilities depend, not so much on ether you took a language in school, but in whether you use it in everyday life. Young people in Europe retain a lot of English fluency because they watch American movies and listen to American songs - for their entertainment, not because they want to stay fluent.

I spent a week in a Privatzimmer in the Black Forest. Every morning my hostess, who was about 50, I would say, would bring me breakfast in the breakfast room, and we would spend some time conversing, in German. (She was great. She had raised children, and, I believe, had grandchildren, and she knew how to communicated with someone [me] with limited language skills - speak slowly and use simple words.) At one point I asked her if she could speak English. She responded that she had taken English in school, but never used it, and had forgotten everything.

My own daughter took French in HS, three years, all As. She hasn't used it since. Today, twenty years later, I doubt that she could construct a sentence in French.

When I travel in Germany, I don't deliberately look for places where people won't speak English, but small, untouristy towns seem to be the places to which I'm attracted, and I meet a lot of Germans there who don't speak English. :)

There is also the phenomenon in some places (Amsterdam, to name just one) where many of the staff at restaurants are from other European countries and use English as a common language. Even the Dutch patrons speak to the waitstaff in English. I've been asked if I wanted the Dutch or the English menu in English by the waiter who turned out to be from Italy and didn't speak a word of Dutch.

Interestingly, at that restaurant the two Italian waiters spoke in English to each other, presumably so their coworkers would know what they were saying.

Tammy, I go to Mexico City often (close and cheap) and a greater percentage of Hungarisns speak English than Mexicans in Mexico City, in and out of the tourist sectors.

In France if I am asked (luckily not often) in English if I want an English menu, I respond in French telling the waiter in French I prefer a French menu and give my order in French. No need to lapse into English. In Germany to preempt the restaurant staff on those occasions from addressing me in English (knowing I am a tourist in their eyes), I automatically greeting them in German upon entering. That sets the tone.

@Mister E-well luckily we will be on a Road Scholar tour so won't have to be "out and about on our own" too much! This is where a guide can be very helpful! In Egypt, we were so happy to have a guide who spoke perfect English and Arabic.

Just reporting back that today I tried "Is it OK if I speak English?" at the local pharmacy here in Sweden. I first had to take a number ticket in order to wait in queue (there were only two other people in the queue), but apparently in Sweden it is very important this number ticket, you can't just walk up to an pharmacist.

Anyway I was helped out by a Middle Eastern gentlemen, we greeted each other in the ubiquitous Swedish "Hej! Hej!" then I asked "Is it OK if I speak English?", he seemed a little flustered a first but nodded slowly. I went on in English asking about a certain type of magnesium, the pharmacist stumbled though some words in English which I didn't quite understand, then he motioned for me to wait. Soon he came back with a native born Swede who spoke in perfect English and was able to help me with the question.

I really appreciated the first pharmacist trying to help me in English as best he could, I totally understand, sometimes it happens to me, with knowing multiple languages your brain scrabbles them all up in your head in the moment you need it the most 😅

I think you should keep working on your Swedish. In the meantime, beginning a conversation with a formal greeting, in Swedish, then asking, in Swedish, whether someone speaks English is perfectly acceptable. Whether they do or don't speak English, making an initial effort in Swedish is never wrong.

I had to call the hotels in Granada and Madrid today. Both times I said "Buenas Tardes, is it OK if I speak English?" and both times got an enthusiastic Yes!

One thing that is surprising (to me) with "Is it OK to speak English?" is the contradiction with the other advice about slowing down, using simpler words, and avoiding slang.

When I grew up "OK" was slang. :)

Robert, that's a good point. Maybe a good substitute would be "I am sorry but I do not speak _______. May I speak English?" or something similar. And actually it would be even more polite to learn that phrase in the language of the country where you are.

When I grew up "OK" was slang. :)

It is still slang, in a lot of languages..... so it tends to work.

Yes. I believe "OK" is so ubiquitous that its become part of the English most (everybody?) people know. It's so useful!

But in the spirit of Mary's short, simple "Is it OK if I speak English?" I'd go with the second part of Mardee's reply "May I speak English?".

That gets around the possible (slight) insult that the person can't speak English that people were concerned about. As did Mary's.

I am linguistically crippled, but I have learned "I dont speak ______ , do you speak American?" In a few languages. If i can do it, anyone can do it. Or write it down and show it.

Always nice to greet the local in his own language?

Me: jol napot
Store Clerk: miben segíthetek
Me: What the he ........... lets start over; Good Afternoon.
Store Clerk: (thinking; why did you waste my time if you dont really speak Hungarian), good afternoon how can I help you?

I think asking anyone in a foreign country permission to speak in English is much better and much more polite than asking them if they speak English.

You can always just tell the person that you don't speak their language: No habla Espanol. Ich spreche kein Deutsch. etc. just English. If you cannot do it in that language, then do it in English. It takes the pressure off of them and you have not offended them. They get to be kind and helpful to you.
Let them then tell you no problem and they continue on in English or let them go get someone who speaks English.

If a French man walks up to me in San Antonio I will not be offended or see him as rude if he:

Begins speaking French then switches to English when he sees the look on my face.

Asks in French if I speak French.

Asks in English if I speak Fench.

Tries to convey a message with hand gestures.

If the rest of the world is more sensitive than me .... their problem.

I'm in the camp of learning greetings (and customs) in the language of the country I'm visiting - like always saying bonjour at first encounter, with a smile of course. I'm trying to learn a little more "small talk" but I'm always afraid they will answer in the language and then I've got nothing more to say.

I'm always reminding my husband and travel mates to say bonjour or buongiorno, which helps me remember.

I did get tripped up a few years ago --- we were on a bike and barge trip in Italy. When I came abroad in the afternoon after biking I asked the Captain if I should great him with boungiorno or buonasera and he said neither "should be buon pomeriggio". It took me a few tries to remember. It was my 60th bday trip and on my bday cake the crew had "buon pomeriggio" written in icing.... EVERYONE on the trip (26 people) got a good laugh but we all remembered!!!

I love the phrase "may I continue in English" very elegant and respectful. I will add that to my travel notes.

Why do you have to talk so much in other countries?

I spent 15 nights in south-central Mexico in August-September. Before my trip, I taught myself some Spanish. Maybe I learned more than necessary, because (strangly unbelievable), I was able to read a lot of descriptions in museums. ... I never asked any employees if we could talk English ... when the hostel staff saw my passport, they started talking English, but they didn't know enough English to be able to reply to me in English... my preference when in non-English speaking places, is to keep my mouth shut most of the time, and to either skip talking to staff, or to interact with staff minimally using whatever of the local language I can come up with. I'm don't want anybody to think imam so stupid that I think English is the only language that exists or that i think everybody in the world should have to adjust to me and speak English...

I think interacting with locals that don't speak English is a fun part of travel. Not something to be avoided like the plague. You learn how to communicate with sign language and a minimum of common words, and most times both parties have an interesting experience.

I agree with you Stan. We love talking to and interacting with locals in their language, no matter how limited. We have met so many wonderful people doing this, some have become lifelong friends. It has always been the highlight of every trip. Avoiding interacting with locals is missing out big time imo.