A Brief History of the French Language

Summary

This video script traces the evolution of the French language from a regional dialect to a global language of prestige. It discusses how Latin and Gaulish merged under Roman rule, the influence of the Franks, and how Old French emerged. The script highlights the historical rivalry with Latin, the rise of French during the 12th-18th centuries, its peak as a diplomatic language, and its spread through colonization. It also addresses the modern influence of English on French and the ongoing efforts to preserve its cultural significance.

Takeaways

• 🌐 The French language has evolved significantly from a regional dialect to a global language of prestige.
• 🏰 Before the 12th century, French was not the dominant language in France and was considered less prestigious than Latin.
• 📚 The French language originated from the mixing of Gaulish and Latin, influenced by the Roman Empire.
• 💪 The Franks' invasion in the 5th century introduced Germanic influences, further differentiating the language from Latin.
• 🗽 French became distinct from Latin by the late 8th century, known as Old French, and started to emerge as a unique language.
• 🏛 The Parisian dialect, or Francien, became the standard French due to Paris's central role in power and culture.
• 🔥 The Albigensian Crusade in the 13th century helped Northern French to spread and dominate over Southern languages like Occitan.
• 📜 Latin was the language of academia and diplomacy until the 16th century when French started to replace it in formal contexts.
• 🌟 The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts in 1539 established French as the official language of France.
• 🌍 By the 18th century, French became the language of diplomacy, science, and culture, spreading across Europe and the world.
• 🇫🇷 French colonialism expanded the language globally, especially in Africa, the Americas, and parts of Asia.

Q & A

How did the French language originate?

The French language originated from the mixing of Gaulish and Latin during the Roman rule in Gaul. Latin became the language of power and urban centers, while Gaulish was pushed to the countryside. Over time, Latin absorbed many Gaulish words, leading to the emergence of a distinct French language.

What role did the Franks play in the development of the French language?

The Franks, who invaded Gaul in the 5th century, significantly influenced the development of the French language by introducing Germanic stress patterns and vocabulary. They also brought linguistic concepts and contributed words for colors and other terms, which further differentiated the language from Latin.

How did the French language become dominant in France over other regional languages?

The French language, known as Francien, became dominant because it originated from the Paris region, which had significant influence. After the Albigensian Crusade, the French crown took control of the south, and Francien started to be used as the language of official business across France.

Why did Latin lose its status as the main language of France to French?

Latin was seen as a fixed and pure language, but it could not adapt to the changing times as French could. French was more suited to the evolving society, and by the 16th century, a series of debates and the advocacy of writers led to French being accepted in formal contexts. The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts in 1539 established French as the official language of France.

How did French become the universal language of the elites?

French became the universal language of the elites due to a combination of factors including its successful export of literature, the size and strength of France, the creation of the Académie française to standardize the language, and its recognition as the language of diplomacy by the 18th century.

What impact did the French Enlightenment have on the status of the French language?

The French Enlightenment, with its influential philosophers, writers, and artists, contributed to the international prestige of the French language. It helped solidify French as a language of culture, diplomacy, and education across Europe and the world.

How did colonization contribute to the spread of the French language?

The French Empire's colonization efforts across Africa, the Americas, and Asia led to French becoming the official language of government and education in its colonies. This served as a lingua franca among colonized people who did not necessarily speak the same language, leading to an explosion of French speakers in these regions.

What is the phenomenon of French adopting English terms called, and how has France responded to it?

The phenomenon of French adopting English terms is called 'franglais'. France has responded with opposition to English influence and a fierce protection of the French language, as seen in works like René Etiemble's 'Parlez-vous franglais?', a critique of anglicisms.

How has the French language maintained its prestige despite the rise of English?

The French language has maintained its prestige by not simply replacing French words with English ones but by adopting them in specific meanings or connotations. This adds nuance to the language. Additionally, French continues to be associated with prestige, luxury, and sophistication, which helps preserve its status.

What is the importance of learning the culture behind the French language?

Learning the culture behind the French language is crucial because the language's development, prestige, and global impact are deeply intertwined with French history and society. Understanding this cultural context enriches one's knowledge of the language and its nuances.

Outlines

00:00

🌐 The Evolution of French Language

The French language has transformed significantly over time. Once viewed as a mix of regional dialects, it has become a symbol of prestige and sophistication. Before the 12th century, French was not the primary language of France but evolved from a blend of Latin and Celtic languages. The Roman Empire's influence introduced Latin to Gaul, which mixed with the local Gaulish language. Over centuries, this 'Frankenstein' of languages developed into Old French, distinct from Latin by the late 8th century. Despite competition from other regional languages like Occitan and Alsatian, the Parisian dialect, or 'Francian,' rose to prominence due to Paris's centralization of power.

05:02

🏰 The Rise of Parisian French and the Decline of Latin

The Parisian dialect, or 'Francian,' emerged as the dominant language in France, partly due to Paris's role as a political, legal, and cultural center. The northern 'long doil' (oui) dialect spread, while the southern 'long duck' (oc) dialects, including Occitan, faced decline. The Albigensian Crusade in the 13th century further solidified the French crown's control over the south, leading to the spread of Francian. Despite Latin's historical prestige, French began to overshadow it as the language of science, theology, diplomacy, and education. The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts in 1539 established French as the official language of France, marking a significant shift from Latin.

10:03

🌟 French as a Lingua Franca and Cultural Influence

By the 17th century, French had become the European lingua franca, taught to upper-class Europeans and spoken in royal courts. Its success abroad was evident as early as the 13th century, and by the 16th century, it held considerable soft power in Europe. The creation of the Académie Française in 1634 aimed to standardize the language, further cementing its status. The 18th century saw French becoming the official language of diplomacy, and its influence spread globally through colonization and cultural exports like literature and philosophy. However, the rise of English, especially post-World War II, began to challenge French's dominance.

15:03

🌍 The Modern Relevance of French Language

Despite facing competition from English, French has maintained its status as a language of prestige and luxury. It's used in marketing to convey sophistication. French's history is intertwined with its culture, making it essential to understand both when learning the language. Modern methods, such as learning through authentic content like videos and TV clips, help learners grasp the language's nuances and cultural significance. French continues to enrich the world, taking from English where appropriate but maintaining its unique character and contributions to global communication.

Keywords

💡French Language

The French language is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as described in the script with the mixing of Latin and Gaulish. The video outlines its historical journey from a less prestigious language to one of international prestige, becoming the language of diplomacy, culture, science, and education. The script illustrates this with the transformation of French from a 'weird Frankenstein' of languages to the dominant language of the 18th century.

💡Gaulish

Gaulish is a Celtic language that was spoken in Gaul, the region that is now France. The script mentions Gaulish as one of the significant languages that mixed with Latin to form the early stages of what would become French. The decline of Gaulish and its absorption into Latin is a key part of the historical narrative of the French language's development.

💡Latin

Latin is an ancient Italic language that, along with Greek, formed the foundation of classical education in the West and was the official language of the Roman Empire. In the context of the video, Latin is portrayed as the dominant language that mixed with Gaulish, leading to the emergence of French. It was also the scholarly language that French had to compete with for prestige and use in formal contexts.

💡Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was a powerful political entity that at its height ruled a vast territory spanning Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia. The script describes how the Roman Empire's control over Gaul led to the imposition of Latin, which eventually mixed with the local Gaulish language, setting the stage for the development of French.

💡Franks

The Franks were a group of Germanic tribes whose invasion of Gaul influenced the development of the French language. The script explains how the Franks introduced Germanic stress patterns and vocabulary into the evolving French language, making it distinct from other Romance languages.

💡Old French

Old French, also known as the language of 'oil' for 'yes', was the stage of the French language that emerged from Latin and other regional languages by the late 8th century. The script uses Old French to mark the point at which the French language became distinct from Latin and started to be recognized as a language in its own right.

💡Occitan

Occitan, also known as the language of 'oc' for 'yes', is a Romance language that was once widely spoken in Southern France. The video script contrasts Occitan with Old French, highlighting how regional languages competed with what would become the standard French language.

💡Parisian Dialect

The Parisian dialect, or Francien, became the standard form of French due to Paris's central role in French politics, culture, and administration. The script emphasizes how the influence of Paris helped to establish this dialect as the standard French, which eventually spread across France and became the official language.

💡Albigensian Crusade

The Albigensian Crusade was a 20-year military campaign in the 13th century against the Cathars, a religious minority in southern France. The script describes how this crusade, while brutal, led to the region coming under the control of the French crown and the subsequent spread of the northern dialect of French.

💡Academie Francaise

The Academie Francaise is an authoritative institution in France that was established in 1634 to protect the French language and establish its rules. The script mentions the Academie as a key factor in the standardization of French, which helped it to become a lingua franca in Europe.

💡Lingua Franca

A lingua franca is a common language used for communication between speakers whose native languages are different. The script explains how French became the lingua franca of the elites, spreading across Europe and the world due to French influence in diplomacy, culture, and colonization.

Highlights

French was not the main language of France before the 12th century.

Before the 16th century, French was not respected much and was seen as second to Latin.

By the 18th century, French became the dominant language of the world in diplomacy, culture, science, and education.

French originated from the mixing of Gaulish and Latin languages.

The Franks influenced French by introducing Germanic stress patterns and vocabulary.

Viking conquests and contact with England introduced seafaring and directional words into French.

Old French emerged as a distinct language by the late 8th century.

Francian, the dialect of Paris, played a crucial role in centralizing power and becoming the default French language.

The Albigensian Crusade led to the decline of Occitan and the rise of French in the south of France.

French overcame Latin as the language of science, theology, diplomacy, and education in the 16th century.

The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts in 1539 established French as the official language of France.

French became the universal language of the elites across Europe by the end of the 17th century.

The French Enlightenment and Napoleon helped spread the French language across Europe.

The French language's prestige and clarity were recognized, contrasting its earlier image as a messy language.

French colonization spread the language across Africa, the Americas, and Asia.

The rise of English began to challenge the status of French in the 19th century.

English loanwords started to be adopted into French, particularly in technical fields.

The French language has maintained its strength by selectively adopting English terms and adding nuance.

French is still seen as a language of prestige and luxury, enriching the world with its 'French touch'.

Transcripts

the french language has gone on a pretty

wild ride

nowadays we see french as one singular

language with clear rules and solid

grammar on top of that we see french as

classy it's the language of

international prestige and the pride of

the french people but historically

speaking this attitude towards french is

actually pretty new before the 12th

century french was not seen as the main

language of france it was one of many

powerful regional languages including

bruton ocsitan and alsatian before the

16th century french was not respected

that much in france it was seen as

second string to the purity of latin as

french was a weird frankenstein in many

different languages but by the time you

get to the 18th century french was the

dominant language of the world the

language of diplomacy culture science

and education so this begs the question

how has french gotten to where it is

today the short answer is that french

has been in contact in competition and

in conflict with lots of different

languages and it's these interactions

that have pushed french to be where it

is today so here's a very brief history

of french adapted from this not very

brief history of french all broken into

five chapters from the origins of french

to its current standings in the 21st

century let's go

imagine for a second that you're a roman

soldier from the 2nd century bce you

look kind of like this you're brave you

wear sick armor you kind of smell

remember this is 2 000 years before axe

body spray and he just arrived in a new

part of the roman empire called gaul in

gaul the people speak gaulish duh a

celtic language but as a good roman

soldier you and your buddies all chat in

latin latin is the language of the

government the administration the

education but golish doesn't just die

out when latin arrives no instead golish

starts to mix with latin and your

children and grandchildren start

speaking aladdin that sounds different

from yours this is basically how the

french language started under roman rule

gaul had two big languages gaulish and

this vulgar latin latin came to be seen

as the language of power and urban

centers and even locals would start to

learn latin so they could get ahead and

get nice jobs with the administration

gaulish on the other hand was pushed

more to the countryside so it started to

get this connotation of being a bit of a

hick language by the 5th century a.d

golish had begun to die out but the

region's latin had already absorbed a

lot of gaulish like the words for sheep

cradle and mud as a result their latin

was starting to look less and less like

pure latin and this trend would only

become more and more pronounced over the

coming centuries

soon the roman empire fell and there was

a power vacuum in gaul lots of different

european powers came in and out of the

region bringing with them their own

changes to the language one of these

groups was the franks when the franks

invaded in the 5th century they changed

the language a lot vulgar latin started

to adopt all these germanic stress

patterns and vocabulary which explains

in part why french is so

special in comparison to the other

romance languages the franks also

brought with them a bunch of linguistic

concepts for instance in latin there

aren't very complex words for colors so

the franks introduced the words for blue

brown and blonde even the name of the

language francais comes from the franks

later though we see even more changes to

the language viking conquests in the

north of france introduced lots of

seafaring words like wave and deck and

contact with england gave words like

boat and the cardinal directions north

south east and west the result of all of

this is that this weird latin gaulish

combo got further and further away from

pure latin it was a frankenstein of

different languages and this is where a

distinct french language starts to

emerge

by the late 8th century this language

was completely distinct from latin now

it would be called old french and here's

where things start to get interesting

we gotta recognize though that this

french that we're talking about is not

the only unique language in france at

the time you also got a ton of other

languages some with radically different

roots in the south you've got oxitan

which is a completely different romance

language kind of like catalan in the

west you've got alsatian which is like a

funky mix of german and french and by

the pyrenees mountains you've got basque

which has completely different roots

from all of the other languages not even

being an indo-european language but when

we say the word french nowadays we're

only really referring to one language

the hohohan

baguette french historians now call this

language francia and it started out as

just one of these dozens of many

languages so how did this one specific

language become the default french

language

well francian didn't originate from just

anywhere it was the dialect of the paris

region and even back in the 12th century

paris still had a lot of influence paris

had everything you needed to centralize

power it was a permanent capital with a

royal court a law court a university and

a religious hub their version of french

and the family of similar languages in

the north started to be known as the

long doil oil being their primitive way

of saying yes

if the north was going strong with his

long doil the south was on a completely

different page speaking primarily the

long duck ok being their way of saying

yes think hawk from latin to generalize

a little bit these long duck were

basically oxitan and a lot of different

dialects and these southerners were just

as proud of their language as the

northerners in fact oksitan was well

known for its poetry during the middle

ages and was the main language of the

troubadours so if oxyton also had this

really rich history why isn't ocsitan

the official french language

well the northern long doyle started to

take over not by peace but by force

you see in the 13th century the north

was strongly aligned with the catholic

church and they started to look down

south and notice that these darn

southerners were in tolerating this new

movement of christianity called

catharism and so the northerners were

all like no way stop doing that weird

new christianity

and remember this is during the time of

the crusades the church was not messing

around so when they looked down south

and they saw those filthy heretics they

felt that they needed to take action

thus started a 20-year attack on the

south called the albigensian crusade and

this albigensian crusade was honestly

brutal so brutal that the guy who coined

the word genocide called these crusades

quote one of the most conclusive cases

of genocide in religious history but the

thing is these crusades didn't even

really work to get rid of these heretics

the result was though that now the south

was under the rule of the french crown

and from this point onward these

northern long doyle would start to play

a bigger and bigger role in the south of

france soon francian would be the

language of official business all across

france of course languages like oxitan

didn't just disappear no they stayed in

these regions and were the everyday

languages for centuries to come in fact

even today there are people who speak

languages like basque alsatian and

occitan and these people are very proud

to protect their language and culture

however after the 13th century all these

languages would slowly lose their chance

of becoming the official language of the

french nation so the french language was

getting more and more powerful however

its biggest hurdle was still ahead of it

and it would spark a national debate

that would divide the french people

okay so i said that latin stopped being

the language that people spoke in their

day to day and that's true but that

doesn't mean that it disappeared

altogether actually quite the opposite

for centuries nearly everything was

written in latin because they thought

latin was objectively better than french

sure french was okay to speak in your

day to day and maybe to write some

literature in but latin was still the

big dog when it came to anything like

science theology diplomacy and education

so even if french beat out these other

dialects it still had a competitor in

latin after all latin had fixed rules it

was a quote-unquote pure organized

language and on top of that it had

tradition with roots that go all the way

back to an enormous empire french on the

other hand was seen as this kind of new

kid on the block a shapeless

bastardization of a bunch of different

languages so how did french beat latin

well latin's biggest strength was also

its biggest weakness you see people love

latin for its fixed grammar and rules

but it also meant that while french

society was progressing latin could not

change with it they could either have a

pure language or a modern one not both

this growing disconnect between the

latin language and the changing times

led to a series of controversial debates

over the course of the 16th century it

was latin versus french and a ton of

writers started to preach the crazy idea

that maybe french was okay to use in

more formal contexts the poet joachim

jubele argued that greek and latin

weren't always seen as these pure

dignified rule-driven languages and that

maybe french too could one day be seen

as prestigious humanists like bartel

miano and guillaume des hotel went even

further arguing that french did not need

to imitate other languages in the first

place to be legitimate they weren't

trashing latin but they were saying come

on let's at least give french a chance

because they knew that french was better

suited to the times and over the years

more and more people got convinced that

the world wouldn't end if you started

using french instead of latin so you

start seeing french being used in all

these scientific publications historical

documents and theological texts and this

all culminated in the 1539 ordinance of

viller coterre which established french

as the official language of france not

occitan not latin and not any other

languages but this was just the

beginning and soon french would grow to

be even larger than anybody had expected

within a few centuries french would come

to be recognized as the universal

language of the elites spreading all

across europe and the world it was

taught to upper-class europeans and

widely spoken in the royal courts how

did this happen how did french in

particular become the european lingua

franca by the end of the 17th century

well french had already had a good bit

of success abroad as early as the 13th

century french literature had begun to

export abroad with pretty great success

so much so that even in the year 1250

this norwegian book urged people to

learn latin and french quote because

they are the most widely known so this

gave french this like artsy and

practical appeal and by the 16th century

french already had considerable soft

power in europe but you've also got to

remember that france was massive at this

time 1 6 the total population of europe

on top of that france had a strong

military and economy plus it was

starting to become one of the most

standardized languages in europe after

all 1634 marked the creation of the

academy frances an organization with the

sole purpose of establishing the rules

of the french language once and for all

so it would make sense that this

language would cinch the status of

lingua franca it's during the 18th

century that french became the official

language of diplomacy putting another

nail in the coffin of latin and french

would only become more and more

internationally influential over the

next two centuries thanks to the french

enlightenment philosophers french

writers artists and a bit of

help from napoleon to spread french

language to the rest of the continent by

1782 the french language was so

widespread that the berlin academy held

an essay competition about the question

what has made the french language

universal the winning essay by antoine

de riverol describes french syntax as

incorruptable and writes quote that

which is not clear is not french so now

french was seen as the language of

prestige and clarity which is only just

a little bit ironic given that a few

centuries before it was seen as the

messy disorganized cousin of latin you

also can't talk about the global impact

of french without talking about its

history of colonization the french

empire reached across the world from

africa to the americas the colonized

people would rarely speak french to each

other in their day-to-day as many held

onto their mother tongues or spoke

french creole or patois but still french

became the official language of the

government in education in france's

colonies and would serve as a lingua

franca between colonized people who did

not necessarily speak the same language

although these people did not

particularly learn french by choice this

led to an explosion of french across

west and north africa as well as parts

of the americas and asia so french had

reached this peak of world power thanks

to a mix of military might and artistic

appeal if you want a deeper look into

the height of french influence i

recommend these videos about the super

influential writers victor hugo and

atuhambo or this french history of

oathkotu all of these videos are

available on fluentu along with

interactive subtitles so you can learn

french while learning history master

french while watching your favorite

videos by trying our free trial just by

clicking on the link in the description

below up until the 19th century french

looked impossible to beat that is until

something unexpected started to happen

that would shake the status of the long

universe

at the height of french's power we also

see the language adopting more and more

loan words from english this really

starts in the mid-1800s england was the

first country to go through the

industrial revolution meaning they

coined a bunch of technical terms that

would soon be adopted into french these

words include railway terms like ticket

tunnel and wagon as well as textile

terms like macintosh and jersey these

english loan words were limited to

technical terms for a while but by the

time you get to world war ii the us had

already started to emerge as a cultural

superpower flooding the rest of the

world with its media movies and music by

the 1950s french had picked up a lot of

english words from automobile to weekend

so many words in fact that the french

coined a term for the phenomenon fonglai

a combination of francais and anglais

and we all know what happened next

english would soon become the

international standard the go-to foreign

language to learn with french adopting

more and more english terms this has

been a pretty controversial process in

france with heavy opposition to english

and a fierce protection of the french

language as in renee tom's sa parlez a

scathing critique of anglicisms

published in 1964. despite this

perceived threat the french language has

held on strong in part because it

doesn't just adopt english terms

willy-nilly when french takes a word

from english it's only in a very

specific meaning or connotation le

puzzle for example only means a jigsaw

puzzle not any other kind of puzzle and

leger only refers to a show girl or

choir girl instead of replacing french

words altogether these words complement

the language and add nuance to specific

terms and for as much as french has

taken from english the french language

continues to enrich the world after all

as any marketing team is aware of the

french language is language of prestige

and luxury and this french touch is used

to show an air of class and

sophistication so while french started

out as this off-brand latin it has grown

to become a force to be reckoned with

and if you look at this very general

history of french you realize you can't

learn the language without learning the

culture behind it at fluentu we realize

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