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Paraguay language: Spanish, Guaraní and what people speak at home
Short answer
Paraguay has 2 official languages, Spanish (castellano) and Guaraní, under article 140 of its Constitution. At home, 38.7% of people aged 5 and over speak both most of the time, 30.9% Spanish and 27.9% Guaraní, according to the 2025 household survey of the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE); 2.2% speak another language. Laws are promulgated in Spanish. Sources read on October 7, 2026.
Languages spoken at home
| Language most spoken at home | Share of people aged 5 and over | People |
|---|---|---|
| Guaraní and Spanish | 38.7% | 2,204,477 |
| Spanish | 30.9% | 1,758,352 |
| Guaraní | 27.9% | 1,587,817 |
| Another language | 2.2% | 126,089 |
INE's Encuesta Permanente de Hogares Continua 2025, published on February 20, 2026, covering 5,696,724 people aged 5 and over. It leaves out the departments of Boquerón and Alto Paraguay, indigenous communities and collective dwellings.
Among the other languages, INE lists English, Portuguese, German, French, Arabic, Polish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean and indigenous languages.
What the law says
- Constitution, article 140: Paraguay is a pluricultural and bilingual country; indigenous languages and those of other minorities are part of the nation's cultural heritage.
- Ley 4251/10 de Lenguas, article 3: the 2 official languages are valid and used in the 3 branches of the State and in all public institutions.
- Article 8: a statement before an authority and a public or private document have the same legal effect in either official language.
- Article 9: every inhabitant has the right to communicate with public officials in one of the 2 official languages.
- Article 14: laws are promulgated in Spanish.
If you do not speak Spanish
The language law gives a person who uses another language the right to be assisted in court by people who know that language (article 9). It also gives non-indigenous cultural communities the right to facilities for learning the official languages, without losing the use of their own (article 13).
For a foreign document, see the certified translators guide; to learn Spanish in Asunción, the Spanish classes guide.
Indigenous languages
The 2022 indigenous census counts 140,049 people from 19 peoples, spread across 5 language families (INE, August 11, 2025).
- Guaraní: 76,506 people, 55.6% of the indigenous population.
- Lengua Maskoy: 31,752 people, 23.1%.
- Mataco Mataguayo: 20,877 people, 15.2%.
- Zamuco and Guaicurú: a little over 5% between the 2.