Languages in Bhutan
English books at an elementary school library.
Dzongkha is the national language of the country of Bhutan and for many people, their native language. However, since English is the scholarly language of the country, once a person enters school, everything is done using the English language. Within one year of elementary school education, the students are fluent in the English language as well as Dzongkha. There are other languages spoken in Bhutan, though many of these are influenced by nearby countries, such as Hindi from India.
Throughout the entire country signs are written in both Dzongkha and English, with some road signs being completely in English. In the towns and villages, when signs use both English and Dzongkha, the English tends to be on the bottom, though this is not always the case. If you travel to Bhutan, you will have little to no trouble getting around using only the English language, though I have heard that the people of Bhutan love it when tourists try to speak Dzongkha.
A Dzongkha word that you will come across often in Bhutan is Dzong, meaning fortress. If you want to learn the basics of the phonetic language Dzongkha, try this website: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/dzongkha.php
Throughout the entire country signs are written in both Dzongkha and English, with some road signs being completely in English. In the towns and villages, when signs use both English and Dzongkha, the English tends to be on the bottom, though this is not always the case. If you travel to Bhutan, you will have little to no trouble getting around using only the English language, though I have heard that the people of Bhutan love it when tourists try to speak Dzongkha.
A Dzongkha word that you will come across often in Bhutan is Dzong, meaning fortress. If you want to learn the basics of the phonetic language Dzongkha, try this website: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/dzongkha.php