LEARNING FRENCH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE
If you are thinking about enrolling in a French language and english to french course, you may find it useful to learn about the popularity and prevalence of this language in other countries.
French in the United States of America
In the United States, French is the fourth native language spoken by the local population and the second most studied language after Spanish.
Quebec is the sixth trading partner of the United States, and over half a million Americans work for French companies. Most of the early formative American legends who rose to prominence along the American frontier in the 19th century were French Canadians born in the St. Lawrence Valley. They colonized New Mexico, helped pioneer the Union Pacific, and discovered gold in California.
New York, California, and Florida joined Louisiana and New England as the main centers for the spread of French in the United States.
In the US, half of foreign films and 30% of foreign books are French. French is the first language of 1.6 million Americans and 6 to 11 million Americans speak fluent French as their second language. Of the 1,100 French unions in the world, 130 are in the United States, which is also home to 55 of the world’s 530 French schools.
French in the British Commonwealth
French and english to french is the main foreign language taught in the UK and remains a popular language to learn in most English-speaking countries.
The United Kingdom and Ireland are home to 14 French agencies, over 50 French clubs and 9 lyceums and French colleges. Overall, over half a million UK citizens study French, from kindergarten to university level.
Five of the countries of the British Commonwealth use French as one of their official languages - Canada, Cameroon, Mauritius (an island in the southwestern Indian Ocean), Seychelles and Vanuatu.
Quebec established its own almost diplomatic representation in London in 1871, almost immediately after Canada became an independent country in 1867.
