Languages of France
See language map.[See also SIL publications on the languages of France.]
French Republic, République Francaise. 60,991,000. National or official language: French. Literacy rate: 99% (Hoffman 1991). Immigrant languages: Adyghe, Algerian Spoken Arabic (660,000), Armenian (70,000), Assyrian Neo-Aramaic, Central Atlas Tamazight (150,000), Central Khmer (50,000), Chru, Giáy (100), Hmong Daw (10,000), Hmong Njua, Iu Mien (700), Judeo-Moroccan Arabic, Judeo-Tunisian Arabic, Kabuverdianu (8,000), Kabyle (537,000), Khmu (500), Kirmanjki, Lao, Laz, Lesser Antillean Creole French (150,000), Mandjak, Morisyen (1,000), Moroccan Spoken Arabic (493,000), Northern Kurdish, Standard German, Tachelhit, Tai Dam (1,250), Tai Dón, Tai Nüa, Tarifit, Tày, Tunisian Spoken Arabic (213,000), Turkish (135,000), Vietnamese (10,000), Western Cham (1,000), Western Farsi (40,000), Western Yiddish, Wolof (34,500), Yeniche. Information mainly from P. Blanchet 1986; B. Comrie 1987; M. Stephens 1976. Blind population: 43,000 (1982 WCE). Deaf population: 3,506,839. Deaf institutions: 99. The number of individual languages listed for France is 25. Of those, 23 are living languages and 2 have no known speakers.
| Basque | [eus]
76,200 in France (1991). 45,000 Labourdin, 22,500 Lower Navarro, 8,700 Souletin. Ethnic population: 730,000 (Johnstone 1993). Pyrénées Atlantiques Province (French-Spanish border), Labourd (Lapurdi) and Basse-Navarre departments, Bayonne and Soule areas.
Dialects: Navarro-Labourdin (Labourdin, Lapurdiera, Eastern Low Navarrese, Benaffarera, Bajo Navarro Oriental, Western Low Navarrese, Bajo Navarro Occidental), Souletin (Souletino, Suletino, Xiberoera, Zuberoera, Suberoan).
Classification: Basque
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| Breton | [bre]
500,000 in France (1989 International Committee for the Defense of the Breton Language). 1,200,000 know Breton who do not regularly use it. Population total all countries: 500,045. West Brittany; dispersed in East Brittany. Also in United States.
Dialects: Leoneg (Leonais), Tregerieg (Tregorrois), Gwenedeg (Vannetais), Kerneveg (Cornouaillais).
Classification: Indo-European, Celtic, Insular, Brythonic
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| Caló | [rmr]
15,000 in France. South.
Alternate names: Gitano, Iberian Romani.
Dialects: Basque Caló, Catalonian Caló, Spanish Caló.
Classification: Mixed language, Iberian-Romani
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| Catalan-Valencian-Balear | [cat]
100,000 in France (1996). Catalonia.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, East Iberian
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| Corsican | [cos]
341,000 in France (Johnstone and Mandryk 2001). Population total all countries: 402,000. Corsica, Paris, Marseilles. Also in Bolivia, Canada, Cuba, Italy, Puerto Rico, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Alternate names: Corse, Corsi, Corso, Corsu.
Dialects: Sartenais, Vico-Ajaccio, Northern Corsican (Cape Cors, Bastia), Venaco. Lexical similarity: 79%–89% among dialects of Bastia, Venaco, Vico, and Sartene. Bonifacio on the southern tip of the island has 78% lexical similarity (highest) with Bastia at extreme north. Ajaccio dialect is central and prestigious.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Southern, Corsican
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| Dutch | [nld]
80,000 in France. Northeast corner, Westhoek, between Artois Hills and Belgium border.
Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, Low Saxon-Low Franconian, Low Franconian
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| Franco-Provençal | [frp]
70,000 in France (1971 census). Population total all countries: 147,000. Southeast, Savoie, Fribourg, and Valais, near Italy and Switzerland borders. Also in Italy, Switzerland.
Alternate names: Arpitan, Patois.
Dialects: Dauphinois, Lyonnais, Neuchatelais, Savoyard. Structurally separate language from French, Piemontese [pms], and Lombard [lmo] (1985 F. Agard). In Switzerland, every canton has its own dialect, with no standardization. Difficult intelligibility among dialects, especially Fribourg.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Gallo-Romance, Gallo-Rhaetian, Oïl, Southeastern
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| French | [fra]
53,200,000 in France (2005). Population total all countries: 67,838,450. Also in Algeria, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Guadeloupe, Guinea, Haiti, India, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Monaco, Morocco, Mozambique, New Caledonia, Niger, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Réunion, Rwanda, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, South Africa, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna.
Alternate names: Français.
Dialects: Standard French, Norman (Normand), Angevin, Berrichon, Bourbonnais, Bourguignon, Franc-Comtois, Gallo, Poitevin, Santongeais, Lorraine. Lexical similarity: 89% with Italian, 80% with Logudorese Sardinian [src], 78% with Romansch [roh], 75% with Portuguese, Romanian [ron], and Spanish, 29% with German, 27% with English.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Gallo-Romance, Gallo-Rhaetian, Oïl, French
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| French Sign Language | [fsl]
50,000 to 100,000 primary users in France (Van Cleve 1986) 1,000 users of Marseille Sign Language (1975 Sallagooty). Southern FSL is used in Marseille, Toulon, La Ciotat, and Salon de Provence. Also in Togo.
Alternate names: FSL, Langue des Signes Française, LSF.
Dialects: Marseille Sign Language (Southern French Sign Language). Many sign languages have been influenced by this, but are not necessarily intelligible with it. Reportedly partially intelligible with sign languages from Austria, Czech Republic, and Italy, at least. Lexical similarity: 43% with American Sign Language [ase] in an 872-word list.
Classification: Deaf sign language
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| German, Swiss | [gsw]
1,500,000 in France (Hawkins 1987). Northeast, Alsace.
Alternate names: Alemannic, Alemannisch.
Dialects: Alsatian (Alsacien, Elsaessisch).
Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, High German, German, Upper German, Alemannic
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| Greek | [ell]
Cargese, Corsica.
Dialects: Cargese.
Classification: Indo-European, Greek, Attic
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| Italian | [ita]
1,000,000 in France (Voegelin and Voegelin 1977).
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Italo-Dalmatian
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| Ligurian | [lij]
Bonifacio, Corsica, and between Italy and Monaco borders.
Alternate names: Ligure.
Dialects: Genoese (Genoan, Genovese).
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Gallo-Romance, Gallo-Italian
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| Luxembourgeois | [ltz]
40,000 in France (2001 J. Nousse). Moselle Department, Germany border to Luxembourg, Thionville.
Alternate names: Frankish, Platt.
Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, High German, German, Middle German, West Middle German, Moselle Franconian
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| Lyons Sign Language | [lsg]
Dialects: 405 km from Paris, but difficult and little intelligibility with French Sign Language.
Classification: Deaf sign language
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| Occitan | [oci]
1,940,000 in France. Population total all countries: 2,048,310. Auvergne, Gascogne, Languedoc, Limousin, and Provence provinces. Also in Italy, Monaco, Spain.
Alternate names: Occitani.
Dialects: Auvergnat (Auverne, Auvernhas), Gascon, Languedocien (Langadoc, Languedoc, Lengadoucian), Limousin (Lemosin), Provençal (Mistralien, Provençal, Prouvençau). Highly fragmented dialect situation, with limited intelligibility between some varieties.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, Oc
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| Picard | [pcd]
Region de Picardie: Amiens, Abbeville, Beauvais, St. Quentin; region Nord-Pas-de-Calais: Lille, Douai, Cambrai, Arras, Valenciennes, Boulogne sur Mer, Calais (except Dunkerque District); east zone, region de Haute Normandie near Dieppe, Picardie border. Also in Belgium.
Alternate names: Chtimi, Rouchi.
Dialects: Ponthieu, Vimeu, Hainaut, Artois, Lillois, Boulonnais, Santerre, Calaisis, Cambresis, Vermandois, Amienois (Amies). All dialects, including those in Belgium, are mutually inherently intelligible.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Gallo-Romance, Gallo-Rhaetian, Oïl, French
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| Portuguese | [por]
750,000 in France (1989).
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, West Iberian, Portuguese-Galician
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| Romani, Balkan | [rmn]
10,500 in France. 10,000 Arlija, 500 Dzambazi.
Dialects: Arlija, Dzambazi.
Classification: Indo-European, Indo-Iranian, Indo-Aryan, Central zone, Romani, Balkan
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| Romani, Sinte | [rmo]
28,400 in France (2000).
Alternate names: Rommanes, Sinti, Tsigane.
Dialects: Manouche (Manuche, Manush).
Classification: Indo-European, Indo-Iranian, Indo-Aryan, Central zone, Romani, Northern
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| Romani, Vlax | [rmy]
10,000 in France. 8,000 Kalderash, 2,000 Lovari.
Alternate names: Rom, Romenes, Tsigane, Vlax.
Dialects: Kalderash, Lovari.
Classification: Indo-European, Indo-Iranian, Indo-Aryan, Central zone, Romani, Vlax
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| Shuadit | [sdt]
Extinct. South, Vaucluse Department, Avignon City.
Alternate names: Judeo-Comtadine, Judeo-Provençal, Shuadi.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, Oc
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| Spanish | [spa]
Alternate names: Castillan.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Ibero-Romance, West Iberian, Castilian
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| Vlaams | [vls]
10,000 in France (1993 M. Evenhuis). Westhoek (French Flanders).
Alternate names: Flamand, Flemish, Vlaemsch.
Dialects: Frans Vlaams (Vlaemsch).
Classification: Indo-European, Germanic, West, Low Saxon-Low Franconian, Low Franconian
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| Zarphatic | [zrp]
Extinct.
Alternate names: Judeo-French.
Classification: Indo-European, Italic, Romance, Italo-Western, Western, Gallo-Iberian, Gallo-Romance, Gallo-Rhaetian, Oïl, French
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