Countries and nationalities
Name countries, nationalities and languages, and talk about where people are from.
In this lesson you will
- Say countries and nationalities
- Use common nationality endings: -ian, -ese, -ish
- Ask and answer: Where are you from? What nationality are you?
Learn
A country is a place: Brazil, Japan, Spain. A nationality is an adjective about a person or thing: Brazilian, Japanese, Spanish. Both always start with a capital letter.
Many nationalities end in -ian or -an (Brazil → Brazilian, Mexico → Mexican), -ese (China → Chinese, Japan → Japanese) or -ish (Spain → Spanish, Turkey → Turkish). Some are different: France → French, the Netherlands → Dutch, Greece → Greek.
We usually say I’m from + country or I’m + nationality: I’m from Egypt / I’m Egyptian. Don’t say “I’m from Egyptian”.
Languages often have the same word as the nationality: He speaks Japanese. But not always: people in Brazil speak Portuguese; people in Egypt speak Arabic.
| Country | Nationality | Main language |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil | Brazilian | Portuguese |
| China | Chinese | Chinese (Mandarin) |
| Egypt | Egyptian | Arabic |
| France | French | French |
| Germany | German | German |
| India | Indian | Hindi, English and others |
| Japan | Japanese | Japanese |
| Mexico | Mexican | Spanish |
| Spain | Spanish | Spanish |
| Turkey (Türkiye) | Turkish | Turkish |
| the UK | British | English |
| the USA | American | English |
Examples
- I’m from Vietnam. I’m Vietnamese.
- Sofia is Italian. She’s from Rome.
- We speak Arabic and English.
- What nationality are you? — I’m Canadian.
- He isn’t French; he’s Swiss.
Vocabulary
country
a nation, like Peru or Kenya
“What country are you from?”
nationality
being from a country
“Her nationality is Korean.”
language
what people speak, like English or Hindi
speak
say words in a language
“I speak Spanish.”
capital
the main city of a country
“Tokyo is the capital of Japan.”
city
a big town
In real life
An international student group.
Audio isn’t available in this browser — read the transcript instead.
Nina: Hi, where are you from?
Arjun: I’m from India. And you?
Nina: I’m Polish. I’m from Kraków.
Arjun: Do you speak English at home?
Nina: No, we speak Polish. And you?
Arjun: We speak Hindi and English.
Practice
Japan → ___
Listening: A new colleague
Audio isn’t available in this browser — read the transcript instead.
Manager: Everyone, this is Kofi. He’s our new designer.
Kofi: Hello! I’m from Ghana, but I live in London now.
Colleague: Welcome, Kofi. Do you speak French?
Kofi: A little. I speak English and Twi.
1.Where is Kofi from?
2.What languages does Kofi speak?
3.Kofi lives in Ghana now.
Speaking
Talk about your country: where you’re from, your nationality, the languages you speak and the capital city.
Model answer
I’m from Colombia. I’m Colombian. I speak Spanish and a little English. The capital of Colombia is Bogotá.
Writing
Write about three people you know (friends, family or famous people): their country, nationality and language.
Lesson quiz
Which is correct?
Review
Key points
- Country = place (Italy); nationality = adjective (Italian).
- Common endings: -ian/-an, -ese, -ish; some are irregular (French, Dutch, Greek).
- I’m from + country / I’m + nationality.
- Always use a capital letter.
What you learned
- ✓ I can say countries and nationalities.
- ✓ I can say what languages people speak.
- ✓ I can ask where people are from.
Grammar reference: The verb “to be” (am, is, are)