Bengali (/bɛŋˈɡɔːli/) or Bangla (/bɑːŋlɑː/; বাংলা Bangla [ˈbaŋla]) is the language native to Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. It is written using the Bengali alphabet. Standard Bangla in Bangladesh and Bengali West Bengal are marked by many differences in words, usage, accent, and phonetics. Bangla is the national language in Bangladesh and second most spoken language in India. With about 250 million native and about 300 million total speakers worldwide, it is the seventh most spoken language in the world by total number of native speakers and the eleventh most spoken language by total number of speakers. The importance of this language to the countries of South Asia is illustrated by the history of the national anthems of Bangladesh and India and the national song of India, all first composed in the Bengali language.