State Language Centre: 200 Words Are Not Enough for Free Conversation in Latvian

A social media post in Latvia claiming that 200 words are enough for everyday conversation in Latvian has prompted wide discussion. The author asked why people who have lived in Latvia for a long time, or since birth, still do not use the language. The news portal LA.LV put the question to specialists at the State Language Centre, the institution that oversees use of the official language in Latvia.

What the post and commenters said

The author wrote that she learned of the 200-word threshold from a teacher who instructs non-Latvians in the language. She asked why not everyone who comes to live in Latvia learns such a vocabulary within a year.

Some commenters held that the main obstacle is unwillingness to learn. Another pointed to Ukrainian civilians, some of whom reportedly learn the language fairly quickly to a level that allows them to work in customer service. Others objected that memorising words is not enough, as one must handle inflection and grammar and understand what the other person says. One mentioned the historical background: in places with a large Russian-speaking community, Russian could be enough in daily life. Some criticised Latvians for switching to Russian when a conversation partner speaks with difficulty.

What the specialists say

The State Language Centre's specialists state that 200 words do not suffice for fluent speech. Such a vocabulary can cover elementary situations: greeting people, asking for directions or saying one wants to eat. Everyday conversation vocabulary spans roughly 4,000–5,000 words, though a few thousand may suffice in some situations. For level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, about 500 active and 500–700 passive words are estimated.

Mastering one proficiency level normally takes about 100–160 lessons, but results depend on age, prior language-learning experience, intensity of classes, native language and how often Latvian is used outside lessons.

Data on language skills

In 1989, about 23% of residents whose native language was not Latvian knew it at some level. Over the past 5–10 years, more than 90% of this group have. According to a 2026 survey, 60.7% of respondents aged 18–34 rated their knowledge as good or very good, as did 56.7% of those aged 35–44 and 29.4% of those aged 65–75.

Publicly funded courses

In 2026, publicly funded programmes planned to teach 7,102 adults, including 3,603 Ukrainian civilians, 2,629 unemployed people and 815 third-country nationals. The State Employment Agency voucher is worth €578.03, while other programmes set a rate of €6.30 per lesson per participant for a 160-hour course.