Which is the second largest native language spoken in Spain by numbers of speakers?

The story behind the answer

Catalan is the second most widely spoken native language in Spain after Spanish (Castilian). It’s the everyday language for millions across Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, and much of Valencia (where it’s called Valencian). By contrast, Portuguese and French aren’t native Spanish languages, and Basque and Galician have fewer native speakers than Catalan.

A Romance language distinct from Spanish and closer in some ways to Occitan, Catalan has deep literary traditions and strong institutional support—schools, media, and public administration use it in its regions. Memory tip: think “Barcelona = big population = lots of Catalan,” making it Spain’s #2 native language.