Turkish

Turkish is a significant language first because of the sheer numbers of people who speak it. 75 million people speak Turkish as their first language, making it one of the globe’s 15 most widely spoken first languages. 

Studying Turkish also lays a solid foundation for learning other modern Turkic languages, like Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tatar, Uzbek, and Uighur. Many of these languages are spoken in regions of vital strategic importance, like the Caucasus, the Balkans, China, and the former Soviet Union, which in turn opens up a multitude of business opportunities.