Languages · Asia
What Language Do They Speak in Afghanistan?
The official languages of Afghanistan are Persian and Pushto. In total about 38 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Persian (50%), Pushto (43%) and Dari (24%).
2
Official languages
38
Living languages · #42
2
Regional official languages
9
Endangered languages
Most spoken languages in Afghanistan
Languages commonly listed for Afghanistan
Languages of neighbouring countries
All languages of Afghanistan (38)
| Language | Speakers here | Family | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Persian | 20,060,800 · 50% | Indo-European | Official |
| Pushto | 17,252,288 · 43% | Indo-European | Official |
| Dari | 9,600,000 · 24% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Southern Uzbek | 4,200,000 · 10% | Turkic | Safe |
| Southern Pashto | 3,700,000 · 9% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Hazaragi | 2,367,174 · 6% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Iranian Persian | 2,000,000 · 5% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Uzbek | 1,885,715 · 5% | Turkic | Regional official |
| Turkmen | 682,067 · 2% | Turkic | Regional official |
| Aimaq | 650,000 · 2% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Parsi-Dari | 481,459 · 1% | Bookkeeping | Safe |
| Northeast Pashai | 400,000 · 1% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Northwest Pashai | 400,000 · 1% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Western Balochi | 252,766 · 0.63% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Southeast Pashai | 180,000 · 0.45% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Southwest Pashai | 100,000 · 0.25% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Ashkun | 40,000 · 0.1% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Wakhi | 38,000 · 0.09% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Kati | 36,000 · 0.09% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Kamviri | 18,000 · 0.04% | — | — |
| Waigali | 12,000 · 0.03% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Gawar-Bati | 9,500 · 0.02% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Prasuni | 8,000 · 0.02% | Indo-European | Threatened |
| Munji | 5,300 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Grangali | 5,000 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Parachi | 3,500 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Tregami | 3,500 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Kara-Kalpak | 3,370 · 0.01% | Turkic | Safe |
| Uighur | 3,009 · 0.01% | Turkic | Safe |
| Savi | 3,000 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Safe |
| Ishkashimi | 2,500 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Sanglechi | 2,200 · 0.01% | Indo-European | Moribund |
| Kazakh | 2,006 · 0.01% | Turkic | Safe |
| Shumashti | 1,000 · 0% | Indo-European | Moribund |
| Ormuri | 50 · 0% | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Northern Pashto | — | Indo-European | Safe |
| Parya | — | Indo-European | Vulnerable |
| Tajiki Arabic | — | Afro-Asiatic | Vulnerable |
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Frequently asked questions
What language do they speak in Afghanistan?
The official languages of Afghanistan are Persian and Pushto. In total about 38 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Persian (50%), Pushto (43%) and Dari (24%).
What is the official language of Afghanistan?
Persian and Pushto. Regional official languages: Uzbek and Turkmen.
Is English spoken in Afghanistan?
English is not widely spoken in Afghanistan — learn a few words of Persian before you go.
How many languages are spoken in Afghanistan?
About 38 living languages — #42 in the world for linguistic diversity. 9 of them are endangered.
Data: Languages of the World dataset (MIT) — ISO 639-3, Glottolog (CC BY 4.0), Unicode CLDR, Google LinguaMeta (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata; country lists: samayo/country-json (MIT).