Five best languages to learn in 2026

This is the typical video released on New year's eve and designed to make you stick to your plan to learn a new language in the new year.

The channel involved is Story Learning, run by Olly Richards and the languages recommended for 2026 are German, Spanish, Norwegian, Vietnamese and Italian.

Recommended languages may vary over time, but the idea is focussing mainly on languages which are not too difficult to learn: no languages with an inaccessible script for English speakers. They are mainly 'type 1' languages, which typically require a few months of intensive study to reach a basic level.

Vietnamese is undoubtably the odd choice: It will take longer to reach a basic level of understanding. 

Norwegian is the less useful one, considering the number of native speakers. The proximity to both Swedish and Danish are useful for native speakers. If you are an intermediate Norwegian speaker, you may recognize most written Danish and much written Swedish. However 'training your ear' for Danish or Swedish is easier said than done. At best, you will be able to accomodate for the large dialectal variation within Norwegian.