Are the Millions of Americans living and residing in Mexico required to be fluent in Spanish?

Question

I have seen Europeans from Scandinavia or the Mediterranean Europe fluent in Spanish, but I have never seen an American. How come?

Answer 1

Huh? Can you tell me what is an American?
I believe that anyone from Canada down to Tierra del Fuego is an American. Or not?
Anyway , the principal reason to learn a new language is because you want to. Learning different languages is an advantage in this Globalized World, and many people, specially the Europeans and Asians know that. Is very interesting that when I travel to the States I speak English but when an "American" came to my Spanish speaking country I speak English to them because they, in general, can't speak Spanish. In my case is a colony problem but in the case of Mexico I don't know.

Answer 2

I know a lot of Americans living in Mexico that doesn't speak Spanish because they are lazy. They hang out with English speakers. Is pretty much like here, each person speak mostly their first language and hang out with people from their own nationality. Also, the ones who have growing children, send them to English school, their kids don't learn Spanish. But is not only Americans, is all nationalities.

Answer 3

I´m an American residing in Mexico and I´m fluent in Spanish. It´s not a requirement by law, but it´s definitely indispensable to speak Spanish if you want to live and work here long term.

Answer 4

Why should they be required to be fluent in Spanish? There are a lot of Americans who are fluent in other languages not only in Spanish. They know how to speak other languages because they want to and not because they have to. There is a huge difference. People who do not know a lot are like that because they choose not to learn and not because they cannot learn. Bill Gates and Albert Einstein were college dropouts. But this didnt stop them from becoming great persons.

Answer 5

There's a place in Mexico Called Chapala where is the biggest American comunnity in the whole country.
They are not required to speak fluent spanish.
The difference is the culture of an european and an american.
European people really cultivate theirselves.

Answer 6

The whole thing is ignorance. You know you can learn another language if you want to. It's not fair to say "Mexicans" don't want to learn english because you have no idea what they want or think. Just the same for americans learning other languages. Just because you hear someone at the grocery store speaking spanish doesnt mean they dont know english also, and doesnt mean they dont want to learn it. Just means they are more comfortable speaking spanish. I am american , my mom is mexican born and my dad US born I was raised with both languages and I learned French in school.
i most of the times speak spanish with my friends , and people automatically look at us as lower class citizens because of it .I think I have a right to speak whatever language I want when I want. Just because you dont want to learn another language doesnt make other people lower than you for knowing other languages, on the contrary , they are using more of their brain. are you jealous? or do they just have there own issues they want to blame someone else for?? This is directed to all the people that think Mexicans are less than human, a person isnt made by the land they were born on , we were all made by GOD.

Answer 7

apparently you haven't been in the same places where the americans who are fluent in spanish are. there are lots of them. just because you personally haven't seen them doesn't mean they don't exist.

my children have several american friends who are fluent in spanish. my son's girlfriend is an esl teacher in a preschool. her mother is peruvian and her father is american so both english and spanish were spoken in her home her whole life.

it's sad when americans are required to be fluent in another language in their native country, but immigrants are not required to be fluent in english. kids where i'm from can not graduate or get into decent colleges without knowing at least one "world language" besides english.

Answer 8

Your world is very small, then. By the way, I'd be interested to see the source that indicates that there are millions of Americans living in Mexico. I'm sure there are very, very many that do. I'd just be interested in seeing the actual number. Also, how many of them are living there legally, and how many are living there illegally? And what are they doing there? Do you know very many Americans living in Mexico?

Answer 9

Because if you never noticed, the U.S. is more than twice the size of Europe, and Canada speaks English as well, so there is no necessity to.

And as for the Americans living in Mexico....the Mexicans understand $$$$. That's all Americans need to know.

By the way, I'm fluent in German but it doesn't do me a darn bit a good here in America. Aufwiedersehn. Gut Nacht.

Answer 10

Required? No.
If they want to jump through the hoops and deal with the unbelievable red tape of trying to become a legal citizen, then yes.
The best visa you can carry in Mexico is pictures of US Presidents.