Science in Spanish
Discover 10 mind-blowing facts you didn't know about Spanish in the scientific world.
La primera idea para desarrollar la ciencia (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
Spanish literature, music, and art enjoy enormous international visibility. However, science conducted by Spanish speakers isn't as well-known.
The aggregate scientific output of the US, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom is seven times greater than that generated in all Spanish-speaking countries.
Does Spanish have a place in the scientific world?
Let's put the data in perspective. Here are 10 things you didn't know about the use of Spanish in science.
La ciencia ene spañol (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
1
Despite the hegemony of English, Spanish is the second language in which the most scientific texts are written, practically double the number of publications in Mandarin Chinese.
2
The percentage of involvement of all Spanish-speaking countries in global scientific output saw constant growth between 1996 and 2014.
La ciencia en el ámbito global (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
3
Currently, Spain is the 10th country in the world in the production of scientific texts. Almost 70% of scientific documents in Spanish-speaking countries are published in Spain.
4
One of the most important databases in the scientific field in Spanish is Latindex. This is a directory specialized in collecting and promoting bibliographic information from scientific publications in Latin America.
La ciencia en la escritura (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
5
In 2022, Latindex had 34,733 publications, of which 44% are dedicated to social sciences, 15% to medical sciences, and 13% to the humanities.
6
Spanish has a significant presence in the publication of scientific articles in fields such as paleontology, mycology, archeology, medicine, construction technology, and robotics.
Recorrido por la ciencia (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
7
If we measure the impact of scientific publications according to the language in which they are written, Spanish ranks fifth.
8
The boom in serial publications in Spanish between 2009 and 2021 is very significant, reflecting a growth of 30%, surpassing German (10%) and French (3%).
La ciencia en el mundo (2023) by Carmen GarcíaFundación Antonio de Nebrija
9
Spain, Argentina, and Colombia are the countries with the most serial scientific publications in Spanish in the ISSN.
10
The digital transformation of book publishing as well as open publication is contributing to the internationalization of Spanish in scientific production. The use of technology favors the promotion and reach of publications written in this language.
The data in this report have been obtained from the Informe del Instituto Cervantes 2022.
Content curation: Aina Arbona
Graphic Editor: Carmen García
Consulting and review: Lola Pons (Universidad de Sevilla)
