🇨🇩 What Language Do They Speak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo?
The short answer
The DR Congo's official language is French — and with around 100 million people, Kinshasa is frequently cited as the largest French-speaking city in the world. Four national languages carry daily life: Lingala (music and the capital), Swahili (east), Kikongo and Tshiluba.
Worth knowing
- ●Kinshasa has overtaken Paris in population, making DRC central to the future of French
- ●Lingala is the language of Congolese rumba — some of Africa's most influential music
- ●Most Congolese speak two to four languages as a matter of course
Going to the Democratic Republic of the Congo? Say your first words before you land.
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