Spanish (español (help·info)) or Castilian (castellano) is a Romance language that originate in northern Spain, and gradually spread in the Kingdom of Castile and evolved into the principal language of government and trade. It was taken to Africa, the Americas, and Asia Pacific when the Spanish Empire was established between the 15th and 19th centuries. Today, between 322 and 400 million people natively speak Spanish, making it the world's second most-spoken language by native speakers (after Mandarin Chinese).