French (français)

French is a Romance language spoken by about 265 million people in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Canada, Switzerland, Italy, the USA, Lebanon, French Guiana, north, west and central Africa, Madagascar, a number of islands in the Indian Ocean, Haiti and other Caribbean islands, Indochina, New Caledonia, the New Hebrides and the French Pacific Territories.

The French language is descended from Latin and first appeared in writing in 842 AD when it was used in the Strasbourg Oaths. Before then Latin was the language used for literature throughout Europe. During the 10th and 11th centuries, French appeared in a number of documents and religious writings, but French literature didn't start to take off until the late 12th / early 13th century. The first great work of French literature was the 'Chanson de Roland' (Song of Roland), which was published in about 1200.

The French alphabet (l'alphabet français)
A a	B b	C c	D d	E e	F f	G g	H h	I i	J j	K k	L l	M m
[ɑ]	[be]	[se]	[de]	[ə]	[ɛf]	[ʒe]	[aʃ]	[i]	[ʒi]	[ka]	[ɛl]	[ɛm]
N n	O o	P p	Q q	R r	S s	T t	U u	V v	W w	X x	Y y	Z z
[ɛn]	[o]	[pe]	[ky]	[ɛʀ]	[ɛs]	[te]	[y]	[ve]	[dubləve]	[iks]	[igʀɛk]	[zɛd]

French pronunciation

Canadian French

Here are some of the differences in pronunciation present in Canadian French.

Canadian French

Sample text

Tous les êtres humains naissent libres et égaux en dignité et en droits. Ils sont doués de raison et de conscience et doivent agir les uns envers les autres dans un esprit de fraternité

Listen to a recording of this text by Jean-marie Cletz

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Longer sample text (Tower of Babel)

Useful phrases in French

French language courses, dictionaries, etc.