The English language, a member of the Indo-European Germanic language family, is composed of 26 letters and originated in the Jutland Peninsula and the Rhine River Valley. It spread worldwide through British colonization and later became an international language due to the economic, military, and political dominance of the United Kingdom and the United States. Currently, English is designated as the official language, both as a mother tongue, by international organizations such as the European Union and the Commonwealth countries. It is also the most widely spoken language in the world and ranks third in terms of the number of native speakers, following Mandarin Chinese and Spanish.
