Mother tongue of the Catalan population 2024

The Catalan and Spanish languages coexist in the coastal region of Catalonia, both enjoying official and equal status. As of 2024, more than 47 percent of the population of Catalonia considered Spanish their mother tongue, whereas about 40 percent reported being native speakers of Catalan. Catalonia was the second most populous autonomous community in Spain in 2024 with about eight million people.

Editorial scene in Catalonia

Despite the fact that the vast majority of books in Spain are published in Spanish, the Catalan language ranked second in the country’s editorial scene at about 9 percent of book publications, revealing the weight of this language among other languages spoken in Spain. In fact, Catalan was one of the most translated languages in this country according to the latest studies.

Catalonia in Spain

The Catalan participation in the Spanish GDP was estimated at 20 percent in 2023. This figure maintained steadily over the last few years, with an average share of about 20 percent of the total GDP of the country. The average GDP per capita in Catalonia was significantly higher than that of the rest of Spain at 34.534 euros in 2022. During the same period, Spain’s average GDP per capita was 28,276 euros.