French

Where it’s spoken

French is the official language of France, parts of Canada (notably Quebec), Belgium, Switzerland, and Monaco, and across most of West and Central Africa — where projected demographic growth could make Africa home to most French speakers by mid-century. The Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie counts 88 member states and governments.

What it sounds like

French has nasal vowels (un bon vin blanc), a uvular “r” sound, and stress that falls regularly on the final syllable of a phrase. Liaison — pronouncing normally silent final consonants before vowel-initial words — gives French its smooth, connected flow. Spelling preserves many letters no longer pronounced.

How it’s written

French uses the Latin alphabet with five diacritics: acute (é), grave (è, à, ù), circumflex (â, ê, î, ô, û), diaeresis (ë, ï, ü), and cedilla (ç). The Académie Française has prescribed standards since 1635 with limited binding authority but considerable cultural weight.

History

French emerged from the langue d’oïl dialects of northern France during the Middle Ages, replacing langue d’oc (Occitan) as the prestige tongue. Standardized through royal administration, it became Europe’s lingua franca by the 17th century.