Number of students studying Spanish in Chinese universities three times that in 2005

A few interesting facts from an article here in Spanish on the popularity of the language in China:


- The number of students that study Spanish in universities in China is now 15,000, three times the number it was in 2005. In addition to this are an extra 3,300 students at the Instituto Cervantes in Beijing, which has also doubled its numbers in a year.

- Chinese students learning Spanish appear to like the words girasol, fruta and margarita in particular.

- The typical student of Spanish in China is a graduate that intends to continue his/her postgraduate studies in a Spanish-speaking country before returning to China, but more often one now finds executives that are carrying out projects in Latin America or Spain that want to know more about business protocol and local culture.