There are numerous studies you can find showing how learning a new language helps the brain in various quantifiable ways such as increases in white and gray bra

There are numerous studies you can find showing how learning a new language helps the brain in various quantifiable ways such as increases in white and gray brain matter. But these can be discovered by a simple search, so let's consider other things. To start with only 372 million people speak English natively, with 611 million adopting it as a workable second language. A total of 983 million. Putting these numbers into context, the total worldwide number of English speakers is less than the population of China. The world today has around 7.7 billion people - 87.2% of them do not speak English. This has implications beyond just communications. Many of us tend to think about things on a global scale. But when you learn another language, especially from a different language group such as Chinese/Arabic/Russian/etc, you'll find that our views and values tend to be very different than people in other nations. I mean I think we all intuitively realize this, but there's a difference between realizing something and actually seeing and experiencing it - such as by participating in discussion sites in a different language. How can we speak of ideas on a global scale with so generally little knowledge of the rest of the world? Suffice to say that our stereotypes of other nations (from which one might hope to at least glean some insight) tend to be no more accurate or insightful than foreign stereotypes of Americans! The web is also rapidly reflecting this difference in language. The internet was 'born and raised' English, but non-English usage on the web (which currently makes up about 45% of the internet) has been growing far faster than English usage. Probably to be expected as English is likely near saturation, but it doesn't change the point that we're going to be trending downward for the foreseeable future on the internet. And perhaps far down if English's role as the 'global language' does not persist. By speaking only English you restrict yourself not only to a small slice of the real world, but what will also be an ever shrinking slice of the digital world. And finally there are the typical arguments. Many other nations have incredibly rich cultures and histories. And these can all be unlocked with little more than the learning of a language. I'm not even really talking about books or arts from hundreds of years ago. This change and cultural difference is ongoing - movies, games, television, etc somehow have such a sharply different feel between nations. In the process of seeing these differences, you also simultaneously learn more about yourself and how your own experience has shaped who you are - which can also help you try to see things more impartially.