Welcome! Today we'll explore why Spanish and English share so many similar words. The answer lies in their shared connection to Latin, the ancient language of the Roman Empire. Both languages have been heavily influenced by Latin, though in different ways.
Spanish is what we call a Romance language, meaning it evolved directly from Latin. Specifically, it came from Vulgar Latin, which was the everyday spoken form of Latin used by common people throughout the Roman Empire. Over centuries, this Latin gradually transformed into what we now know as Spanish. You can see this evolution in many words: Latin 'aqua' became Spanish 'agua', Latin 'mater' became 'madre', and Latin 'bonus' became 'bueno'.
English has a more complex history. It's fundamentally a Germanic language, but it has been heavily influenced by Latin in two major ways. First, after the Norman Conquest in 1066, Norman French brought thousands of Latin-derived words into English. Second, during the Renaissance, scholars directly borrowed many Latin words for academic and scientific purposes. This is why English has both Germanic roots and a huge Latin vocabulary.
Here are concrete examples of how Latin roots appear in both Spanish and English. Notice how 'familia' in Latin became 'familia' in Spanish and 'family' in English. 'Natura' became 'naturaleza' and 'nature'. Some words like 'animal' and 'hospital' are nearly identical in all three languages. Academic words like 'universidad' and 'university' from Latin 'universitas' show how both languages borrowed scholarly vocabulary. These similarities make it easier for Spanish and English speakers to recognize words in each other's languages.
In conclusion, Spanish and English share many similar words because both languages have been heavily influenced by Latin, though in different ways. Spanish evolved directly from Latin as a Romance language, while English, despite being Germanic at its core, borrowed thousands of Latin words through Norman French and later scholarly borrowing. This shared Latin heritage is why speakers of these languages can often recognize familiar words in each other's languages, making language learning easier and highlighting our common linguistic ancestry.