Spanish is derived from a dialect of Latin that came over from the Romans. It took centuries to fully develop and differentiate from Latin that came over in the early centuries A.D.

The "first written Spanish" is thought to have appeared in the Glosas Emilianenses sometime around the 10th and 11th century A.D.

King Alfonso X of Castile was one of the first to start standardizing written Spanish. And, Antonio Nebrija published the first Spanish grammar book in the 15th century.

Spanish exploration, starting in 1492, brought Spanish to the Americas. This language continued to diverge throughout Central America and South America to the dialects we know today.

In Africa, Spanish dates from the 18th century, even being the official language of Equatorial Guinea. Spanish is also spoken mainly throughout Western Sahara.

Spanish is considered very positive throughout the world. It was designated one of the primary languages of the United Nations among the founding and continues to be one of the six primary languages of the U.N. today.