Wikijunior:Languages/French

What writing system(s) does this language use?
French uses the Latin alphabet just as English does, with the addition of several accent marks that are not used in English: the acute accent or accent aigu (é), the grave accent or accent grave (è), and the circumflex accent or accent circonflexe (ê). There is also a diacritical mark called a cedilla or cédille, which is placed under the letter c (ç) to give it a soft pronunciation (like an "s" sound) in certain situations where it would otherwise be pronounced hard (like a "k").

How many people speak this language?
There are 110 million people who can speak French natively. But there are 300 million French speakers total, which means that 190 million people decided to learn the language as adults! This is because there is a lot of interesting literature in French. French is also a language often used in diplomacy.

Where is this language spoken?
As you probably already figured out, French was first spoken in France. Four of France's neighbors — Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Monaco — also use French as one of their official languages. And because of colonization, French is spoken in Canada (the majority in Québec), Louisiana, Africa, and other places around the world.

What is the history of this language?
French evolved from the Latin language, just like Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian. It was first used by the Franks, a people who lived in what we now call France. In the 1600s, French people came to Canada and settled in the area we now call Québec. Some French people (who were expelled from Canada) also settled in Louisiana, which was named in honor of King Louis XIV of France. Louisiana is now a state of the United States. In the 1800s, France conquered large parts of northern, western, and central Africa, mostly in the Sahara desert. As France took over ruling these territories and their populations, they established French as the language of instruction in schools, and as the official language of the government. Over time, French became the second native language of many African people, although local languages are still used most often in the home. Although France no longer rules these former colonies, they still use French in daily life.

Who are some famous authors or poets in this language?

 * Victor Hugo (1802 – 1885), Les Misérables
 * Alexandre Dumas (1802 – 1870), Les Trois Mousquetaires (The Three Musketeers)
 * Jules Verne (1828 – 1905), Vingt mille lieues sous les mers (Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea)
 * Francois Marie Arouet, better known as Voltaire (1694 – 1778), Zadig ou la Destinée (Zadig, or The Book of Fate)
 * Gaston Leroux (1868 – 1927), Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (The Phantom of the Opera)

Frère Jacques
This song can be sung as a 'round', which is when one person or group starts the song, and when they arrive at the end of the first verse, the second person or group begins.