The Chinese language is one of the most ancient languages still in use today. When Chinese first came over to the Americas, there was very little they could communicate and so much of what they could not understand they learned from Europeans. As a result, their culture and language spread quickly across the continent, even to places like Texas where there was already a strong Chinese influence. Today, it is one of the most commonly spoken languages in all of North America and much of Central America.
While English is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, there are many Chinese who speak only their native language (sometimes called their “mother tongue”) which makes communication between them and Americans extremely difficult.