¿Por qué personas de habla inglesa quieren aprender español?

[poli]

I have heard that Spanish is more widely spoken but doubt it. Maybe what they mean is Spanish as a mother tongue. Perhaps they forget about India. Every Indian that I have known speaks English (some better than others).

Spanish is widely spoken in New York, but the number of Spanish-speaking residents of Manhattan is shrinking. In other boroughs it is holding its own or growing. I am sure that Mexico City is the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world.

[Sancho Panther]

Originally Posted by poli

I am sure that Mexico City is the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world.

Yes I'm sure you're right - I'd forgotten about Mexico City!

Perhaps NY is second after Mexico City!

[poli]

Olvidaste Bogotá, Lima, Santiago de Chile, y tal vez La Habana, Guadalajara, Medellin, Caracas y Cali.

New Yorkers like to brag. It's a great place, but sometimes the brag is a lie.

[Sancho Panther]

but sometimes the brag is a lie.

A bit harsh on your own townspeople that! Wouldn't 'massive exaggeration' be a little kinder?

Or are my gentle English sensitivities a bit misplaced?

[poli]

That's true. Civic pride encourages exaggeration (the best restaurants, the biggest rats, the biggest Chinese population outside of China, more Jews than Tel Aviv, the most Vermeers, the list goes on), and lie is a harsh term. Hyperbole or just plain hype is a New-York thing that annoys the heck out of other communities. Sometimes the hype is real.