Migrants Learn Language of German Boom

On recent lists of the world’s most common languages, German just misses ranking among the top ten. Still, thanks to German’s economic success, demand for German lessons is high, reports Ralph Atkins for the Financial Times: “Gross domestic product rose 3 per cent in 2011 – twice as fast as US growth or overall eurozone GDP – making it one of the best years since German reunification in 1990.” As an export-driven economy, Germany is rebalancing its own economic policies, with upticks in investment and consumer spending, while also providing leadership on the eurozone crisis. European youth who can easily migrate to Germany increasingly view the country as a land of jobs and opportunity, notes the president of the Goethe Institute. Unlike other European nations, Germany is not confronting a need to endure extreme austerity measures. As long as German companies prefer hiring employees who can speak German rather than English, the demand for German lessons will remain high. – YaleGlobal