French Language History

French, a modern Romantic language, is currently the official language of 22 countries throughout the world. While over 66 million people speak French as their primary language, many elite politicians and businessmen – including the diplomats of the European Union – use French as their official language of international business.

Despite the remarkable presence of the French language in modern times, the history of this language shares its humble beginnings with that of many other Romance languages. Originally derived from Gallic and Latin, French ultimately evolved from the influence of many different ancient cultures.

The Early History of the French Language

In ancient times, prior to 58 BCE, the region currently known as France was occupied by the Gauls, a group of Celtic peoples who spoke primitive forms of a Gallic language.

Among one of the first factors that influenced this ancient French was the Roman invasion of France (58 to 52 BCE). This early infiltration introduced elements of Latin to the Gauls' Gallic. Interestingly, in the coming centuries, Latin linguistic influences ultimately took over this language's Gallic roots.

As passing centuries brought people into the Common Era (CE), warring tribes attempting to gain more land continued to battle over Gaul and, in many cases, influenced the budding French language. Some of these peoples who were most important in the ongoing evolution of French included the:

• Alemanni of Germany and northeastern France
• Burgundians of the Rhone Valley region
• Franks of northern France
• Visigoths of Spain.

These peoples not only affected the pronunciation of many ancient French words, but they also influenced French language history by introducing entirely new words to the Gauls.

French in the Middle Ages

Many modern linguists characterize Medieval French the same way as Dante, a medieval Italian poet. With the beginnings of a unique French language taking shape, there were three distinct variations of French in the Middle Ages:

• Franco-Provençal spoken in the mountainous regions of central and eastern France
• Langue d'oil spoken in northern France
• Langue d'oc spoken in southern France (and in areas of Spain, at the time).

As war and trade continued to bring new cultures together, French-speaking peoples were continually introduced to new linguistic influences. During the Middle Ages, influences that continued to shape the French language included the:

• Breton speakers of England
• Vascon speakers of Iberia (Vascon is thought to be an early version of the modern Basque language.)
• Vikings of Scandinavia.

Characteristics of the Modern French Language

Linguists categorize "Modern French" to be the French language spoken and written since the 1600s. In fact, since 1634, the Académie française (the French Academy) has been monitoring the "purity" of the French language.

This organization, which counts 40 directors, has worked for nearly four centuries to preserve the French language. In addition to regulating the incorporation of foreign words, the Académie française is also responsible for selecting brand new words (specifically those for new technologies – such as computers, the Internet, etc.)

Modern French-Speaking Countries

In addition to the 22 countries that currently list French as an official language, there are a number of others in which French is considered to be a secondary language. Some of the countries in which French is widely spoken include:

• Belgium
• Cameroon
• Canada
• Congo
• France
• Haiti
• Madagascar
• Switzerland
• Zaire

Today, French is the second most studied language in the world after English.

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