Editing Lingua franca (section)

====French====
[[File:Map-Francophone World.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|French language distribution
{{legend|#0049a2|Majority native language}}
{{legend|#006aFF|Official language, but not a majority native language}}
{{legend|#8ec3ff|Administrative or cultural language}}
]]

French is sometimes regarded as the first global lingua franca, having supplanted [[Latin]] as the prestige language of politics, trade, education, diplomacy, and military in [[Early modern period|early modern]] Europe and later spreading around the world with the establishment of the [[French colonial empire]].<ref name="Wright">{{cite journal|last=Wright|first=Sue|date=2006|title=French as a lingua franca|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/annual-review-of-applied-linguistics/article/abs/french-as-a-lingua-franca/709F93AD0A5A7E7162C6E170FCA59E43|journal=Annual Review of Applied Linguistics|volume=26|pages=35–60|doi=10.1017/S0267190506000031|doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 }}</ref> With [[France]] emerging as the leading political, economic, and cultural power of Europe in the 16th century, the language was adopted by royal courts throughout the continent, including the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Russia, and as the language of communication between European academics, merchants, and diplomats.<ref>{{cite book |title=When The World Spoke French |author=Marc Fumaroli |translator=Richard Howard |year=2011 |publisher=New York Review of Books |isbn=978-1590173756 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/whenworldspokefr00fuma }}</ref> With the expansion of Western colonial empires, French became the main language of diplomacy and international relations up until [[World War II]] when it was replaced by English due the rise of the [[United States]] as the leading [[superpower]]. Stanley Meisler of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' said that the fact that the [[Treaty of Versailles]] was written in English as well as French was the "first diplomatic blow" against the language.<ref>{{cite news|last=Meisler|first=Stanley|title=Seduction Still Works : French—a Language in Decline|newspaper=The Los Angeles Times|date=1 March 1986|access-date=18 October 2021|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-03-01-mn-13048-story.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702203738/http://articles.latimes.com/1986-03-01/news/mn-13048_1_french-language/2|archive-date=2 July 2015}}</ref> Nevertheless, it remains the second most used language in international affairs and is one of the [[Official languages of the United Nations|six official languages of the United Nations]].<ref name="andaman.org">[http://www.andaman.org/BOOK/reprints/weber/rep-weber.htm The World's 10 Most Influential Languages] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080312042140/http://www.andaman.org/BOOK/reprints/weber/rep-weber.htm |date=12 March 2008 }} ''Top Languages''. Retrieved 11 April 2011.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pya2KY8upAUC&pg=PA2 |title=The French Language Today: A Linguistic Introduction |last1=Battye |first1=Adrian |last2=Hintze |first2=Marie-Anne |last3=Rowlett |first3=Paul |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2003 |language=en |isbn=978-0-203-41796-6 |access-date=19 March 2022 |archive-date=17 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017152354/https://books.google.com/books?id=pya2KY8upAUC&pg=PA2 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[https://ask.un.org/faq/14463?_gl=1*17fvpf2*_ga*NjYyMTgyNjE4LjE3MTM2NDc0OTQ.*_ga_TK9BQL5X7Z*MTcxMzY0NzQ5My4xLjEuMTcxMzY0NzkxMy4wLjAuMA.. What are the official languages of the United Nations?], ''Ask UN'', 23 December 2023.</ref>

As a legacy of French and [[Belgian colonial empire|Belgian]] colonial rule, most former colonies of these countries maintain French as an official language or lingua franca due to the many indigenous languages spoken in their territory. Notably, in most Francophone [[West Africa|West]] and [[Central Africa]]n countries, French has transitioned from being only a lingua franca to the native language among some communities, mostly in urban areas or among the elite class.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2019-04-07|title=Why the future of French is African|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47790128|access-date=2021-04-24|archive-date=11 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411215818/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47790128|url-status=live}}</ref> In other regions such as the French-speaking countries of the [[Maghreb]] ([[Algeria]], [[Tunisia]], [[Morocco]], and [[Mauritania]]) and parts of the [[French Caribbean]], French is the lingua franca in professional sectors and education, even though it is not the native language of the majority.<ref name="Maamri1013">Maamri, Malika Rebai. "[http://openaccesslibrary.org/images/Malika_Rebai_Maamri.pdf The Syndrome of the French Language in Algeria]." ([https://web.archive.org/web/20151123121428/http://openaccesslibrary.org/images/Malika_Rebai_Maamri.pdf Archive]) ''International Journal of Arts and Sciences''. 3(3): 77 – 89 (2009) CD-ROM. {{ISSN|1944-6934}} p. 10 of 13</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Stevens |first=Paul |title=Modernism and Authenticity as Reflected in Language Attitudes : The Case of Tunisia |publisher=Civilisations |volume=30 |issue=1/2 |year=1980 |pages=37–59 |jstor=41802986 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/41802986 }}</ref><ref>Felicien, Marie Michelle. [https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/schools-teaching-creole-instead-french-rise-haiti/ Schools Teaching in Creole Instead of French on the Rise in Haiti], ''Global Press Journal'', 13 November 2019</ref>

French continues to be used as a lingua franca in certain cultural fields such as [[cuisine]], [[fashion]], and [[sport]].<ref>Notaker, Henry. [https://lithub.com/how-french-cuisine-took-over-the-world/ How French Cuisine Took Over the World], excerpt from ''A History of Cookbooks From Kitchen to Page over Seven Centuries'', University of California Press, 13 September 2017.</ref><ref name="Wright"></ref>

As a consequence of [[Brexit]], French has been increasingly used as a lingua franca in the [[European Union]] and its institutions either alongside or, at times, in place of English.<ref>Chazan, Guy and Jim Brunsden. [https://www.ft.com/content/e70b5042-3c65-11e6-8716-a4a71e8140b0 Push to bid adieu to English as EU's lingua franca], ''Financial Times'', 28 June 2016.</ref><ref>Rankin, Jennifer. [https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/may/05/brexit-english-is-losing-its-importance-in-europe-says-juncker Brexit: English is losing its importance in Europe, says Juncker], ''[[The Guardian]]'', 5 May 2017.</ref>