Read the following sentences first:
– “He left for biberine.” (1)
– “I will come to see you between lids.” (2)
– “Talk how the beak has pushed you!” (3)
– “The compost is full of Buzhug.” (4)
– “A Vista de Nas, he owes me 10,000 euros.” (5)
And now, would you say that these are French mistakes? Or variants of the French language?
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Well, let’s recognize it. Knowing that this newsletter is the editorial line of the defense of cultural diversity, the suspense concerning the correct answer is relatively moderate. This is the second proposal that is valid, but this assertion is not always of self -and it is logical. Didn’t school have taught us that there would be only one way to express themselves in French? Hence the “You speak badly!”, Sometimes agreed to those who do not follow the norm. A reproach that applies as well for pronunciation (Ah, the famous “Marseille accent”!), Syntax (“Give me”, in Alsace) or even vocabulary: “Cense” for “Farm”, in the North; “Discuss” to “crush” in Provence; “Bléjer” to “howl” in Brittany; “Patac” for “blow” in Toulouse (“Ouh, he got a patac!”). And so many others …
It is therefore necessary to pay tribute to Le Robert editions for having launched under the aegis of Linguist Médéric Gasquet-Cyrus a collection entitled “It says like that“, Available in Marseille, in Brittany, in the North, in Alsace and, this March 6, in Toulouse. A collection in addition to high quality, both on the background (the texts are written by academics) and on the form (the model is accompanied by a crowd of cards, anecdotes and graphics).
These particularisms obviously reflect the deeply multilingual character of our country. Until the twentieth century, many of our compatriots had for daily language Auvergne, Corsica, Franc-Comtois, Basque, etc. It took compulsory school to bring populations to gradually adopt French. Except that, logically, it was influenced by the languages which were in use before, with their lexicons, their expressions and their specific pronunciations.
These influences in the four corners of France, as the other said (I love poor-propos expressions!). This is the case in Alsace with “weich (you see)? “,” Ratsch (talkative) “or an expression like” having a top “, literal transposition of”Einer Drowwe Hàn“(” to be in great shape “or” go at full speed “). This is also the case in Hauts-de-France, whether for the Picard (” Viéserie “, for” Fripes “) or for the Flemish (” Wassingue “for” Mangière “). This is the case for the two languages of Brittany: Breton, obviously (“biskoazh“, For” never seen “;” there is nothing more “to say” he has lost a lot “, word to word to word of the sentence” n‘eus ket mann ebet ke deusoutañ“), but also the Gallo. In this language of Latin origin spoken in the east of the region, the progressive present is of common use, which explains turns like” it is to work in the garden “. In Toulouse, finally, it is the Languedocian whose footprint is found with the famous”what is aquò“, literally” What is that? “,”aquò“corresponding to the neutral demonstrative pronoun.
In a less marked way, regional French can also be influenced by the proximity of a neighboring country, as evidenced by certain “Belgicisms” used in the North (“Do you know how to pass me salt?”, “Knowing” having a sense of “power”). In Marseille, an open city connected by its port to the whole world, it is the foreign communities that have come to bring their color to the local talk, especially the Italians: for example “tchougade“To designate a shady, adaptation of the Neapolitan term “Cecato” (“blind”).
Finally, note that these regional French people themselves experience variations, according to generations, places or social classes and that the phenomenon is perpetual evolution. Starting from the suffix –ade, OM supporters invented the “papinades” to evoke the goals of striker Jean -Pierre Papin. Above all, let us remember that they are neither errors nor slang and even less patois. These are all French “others” who enrich our common language.
(1) “He loses reason”, in Marseille.
(2) “I will come to see you between noon and two”, in the North.
(3) “Talk your mother tongue”, in Alsace.
(4) “The compost is full of earthworms”, in Brittany.
(5) “At the nose, he owes me 10,000 euros”, in Toulouse.
To find out more
It is said like that in Marseille, Toulouse, Alsace, Brittany, in the North. Editions Le Robert
Find videos devoted to French and the languages of France On my YouTube channel
To read – on the side of the French language
Should we introduce inclusive writing to school? The for …
This article that is both militant and argued written by Quebec academics wonders about the possibility of teaching inclusive writing to school. If the authors claim that they simply plan to “collect data” on the subject, they do not hide them a priori favorable to this idea.
“Let’s not confuse language and ideology.” On the contrary, this is the conviction of Anne-Emmanuelle Lejeune, which is opposed in this article to inclusive writing. “As a universalist feminist having sat for three years on the board of directors of the Association for the Rights of Women of Quebec, I am convinced that the inclusive writing and the forced feminization of the professions are not means to achieve equality,” she writes.
Can we end the Anglicisms in fashion?
This is in any case the objective of the association for the promotion of French in fashion, which proposes for example to use “Handerer style” and “Princess style” rather than “Gorpcore” And “Royalcore”.
AI at the service of the Francophonie
If English reigns supreme on the web, a French team tries to change the situation using artificial intelligence to create biographies in French.
To read – On the side of minority languages
In Lorient, little Fañch can keep its tilde… for the moment
The Lorient court has just spoken in favor of the use of the tilde (~) in the first name Breton Fañch, which the Lorient prosecutor’s office had refused. However, the prosecutor has already warned that a “public prosecutor’s appeal seems highly likely”.
Trump makes English the only official language in the United States
Due to a decree signed on March 1 by Donald Trump, federal agencies now no longer have the obligation to provide services in languages other than English. The United States had only recognized no official language.
Promote minority languages on voice assistants
Mozilla has a conviction :: “If we want the web to remain open to everyone, vocal assistants must offer all languages.” A conviction that this non -profit organization puts into practice through its project Common Voice, A web service open to all Internet users. To date, among the minority languages of France, only the Basque (11,000 participants), Breton (200), Catalan (37,000) and Occitan (150) are present, while the Alsatian and Corsica are being developed. It is up to you to add other languages to it or enrich the corpus of those that are already found there.
Take part in the Festival of Accents !
The first edition of the “Festival of accents, languages and ways of speaking” will be held in Saint-Etienne du March 19 to 22. Designed by academics, it is aimed at the general public as well as to the scientific community and will offer workshops, conferences, meetings, games, shows, songs, programs and testimonies.
What if you spent an Occitan license?
High school students, students, enthusiasts, employees, unemployed … You have the opportunity to register in the Occitan license, for example at the Paul-Valéry University in Montpellier. An opportunity to access many professions while deepening his knowledge of a linguistic, cultural and literary universe rich in a thousand years of history.
It’s the month of Gallo and Breton!
Brittany highlights its two historical languages in this month of March. The 12ᵉ month of the Gallo will be held from March 12 to 19 with the aim of making this Latin language better known in eastern Brittany. Breton monthit takes place until April 6. Multiple events are organized on this occasion.
Listen
Writing in Alsatian on his phone is possible
It is not easy to write in Alsatian on your phone, except with the keyboard specially designed for this purpose by the general delegation to the French language and the languages of France (DGLFLF) of the Ministry of Culture. An initiative welcomed in Alsace.
Valorize literatures in regional languages at school!
Have the American, Italian or Greek authors study in French version in the school of the Republic? No problem. Do the same with Basque, Breton, Occitans or Creole authors? No question! It is this contradiction that the collective for literatures in regional languages at school (to which I belong) tries to raise. Philippe Pratx, one of his animators, explains this approach here. It is also possible to sign the petition Launched for this purpose.
To look
What is the origin of “bissextile”?
Because a year takes place in about three hundred and sixty-five days and six hours, it is necessary to add a day every four years so that the account is good. Originally, the Romans had curiously chosen to pose this additional day on February 24, the sixth day before March 1ᵉʳ. However, in Latin, “sixth” is said “Sextus”. And as the year it happens, there are two February 24, they called this day “Bi-Sextus” and qualified the corresponding year of year “Bisextilis”. It remains to understand how these same Romans managed to count six days between February 24 and March 1ᵉʳ. For this, I refer you to the video of the spelling historian Bernard Fipiat.
Do you sing in a language in France? Follow the Francis Cabrel internship
Each year, Francis Cabrel forms singers-songwriters in his town in Astaffort (Lot-et-Garonne). This year, the internship is reserved for artists who express themselves in so -called regional languages. Do not miss registrations.
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