Languages of Sierra Leone - wikipedia Languages of Sierra Leone Sierra Leone is a multilingual country. English is the de facto official language, and Krio is the most widely spoken and is spoken in different countries. Other major languages include Mende, which is spoken by 37 % of the population as a mother tongue and as a lingua franca in southern Sierra Leone, and Temne, which is spoken by 29.7 % as a mother tongue and also as a lingua franca in northern Sierra Leone and some part of the Capital and the Western Area. Other languages include Kono, Kissi, Kuranko, Limba, Fula ( Pular ) and Susu. Although English, as the official language, is spoken in schools, government administration and the media, Krio is spoken as a lingua franca in virtually all parts of Sierra Leone. Krio, an English - based creole language, is the mother tongue of 10.5 % of the population but is spoken by 90 % of Sierra Leoneans. See also Sierra Leonean Sign Language References Jump up ^ Lewis, M. Paul, Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig ( eds. ). 2014. Ethnologue : Languages of the World, Seventeenth edition. Dallas, Texas : SIL International. ( Page on `` Sierra Leone. ) Jump up ^ `` Republic of Sierra Leone '' ( in French ). Trésor de la langue française au Québec. 18 June 2009. Retrieved 14 January 2013. Languages of Sierra Leone Official language English Indigenous languages Fula Klao Kono Kissi Kuranko Limba Loko Maninka Mende Pular Sherbro Sua Susu Temne Yalunka Creole languages Krio Sierra Leone articles History Atlantic slave trade ( 1600 -- 1787 ) British colony ( 1787 -- 1961 ) Early independence ( 1961 -- 78 ) Civil War ( 1991 -- 2002 ) 2002 to present 2014 Ebola virus epidemic Geography Cities and towns Climate Protected areas Upper Guinean forests Water supply Wildlife Politics Administrative divisions Cabinet Elections Foreign relations Government Human rights Law enforcement Military Parliament Political parties President Vice-President Judiciary of Sierra Leone Special Court Supreme Court Economy Agriculture Banking Central bank Leone ( currency ) Mining Telecommunications Tourism Transport Society Demographics Education Ethnic groups Health Languages Religion Women Culture Anthem Art Coat of arms Cuisine Flag Media Music Polygamy Sports Outline Index Book Portal Languages of Africa Sovereign states Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde ( Cabo Verde ) Central African Republic Chad Comoros Democratic Republic of the Congo Republic of the Congo Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast ( Côte d'Ivoire ) Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Swaziland Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe States with limited recognition Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Somaliland Dependencies and other territories Canary Islands / Ceuta / Melilla ( Spain ) Madeira ( Portugal ) Mayotte / Réunion ( France ) Saint Helena / Ascension Island / Tristan da Cunha ( United Kingdom ) Western Sahara Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Languages_of_Sierra_Leone&oldid=835129889 '' Categories : Languages of Sierra Leone Hidden categories : CS1 French - language sources ( fr ) Talk About Wikipedia Languages বাংলা Français Русский Suomi Edit links This page was last edited on 6 April 2018, at 18 : 59. About Wikipedia

Question: what is the official language in sierra leone
Answer: English is the de facto official language