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African French (French: français africain) is the generic name of the varieties of the French language spoken by an estimated 167 million people in Africa in 2023 or 51% of the French-speaking population of the world [4][5][6] spread across 34 countries and territories. [Note 1] This includes those who speak French as a first or second ...
Some linguists discuss a "second French language" [70] or even an "African French language". [71] Native Speakers in Africa. According to Paul Wald, "The notion of ownership of an imported language begins when – despite its identification as a foreign and/or vernacular language – its use does not imply a relationship with the foreigner."
An endangered language is a language that it is at risk of falling out of use, generally because it has few surviving speakers. If it loses all of its native people, it becomes an extinct language. UNESCO defines four levels of language endangerment between "safe" (not endangered) and "extinct": [1] Vulnerable. Definitely endangered.
French is an administrative language and is commonly but unofficially used in the Maghreb states, Mauritania, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.As of 2023, an estimated 350 million African people spread across 34 African countries can speak French either as a first or second language, mostly as a secondary language, making Africa the continent with the most French speakers in the world. [2]
Language death is a process in which the level of a speech community 's linguistic competence in their language variety decreases, eventually resulting in no native or fluent speakers of the variety. Language death can affect any language form, including dialects. Language death should not be confused with language attrition (also called ...
French in South Africa: 380,000: ... Although declining by the turn of the 20th century, ... French is the fourth most spoken language in the United States, after ...
The Pulaar language is a declining language in West Africa, the surrounding Niger-Congo languages, such as Wolof, are increasing in speakers instead. [16] [17] A 1987–1988 study of bilingual North Senegalese communities found that the use of Pulaar was decreasing in the younger generation.
French is an official language in 27 independent nations. French is also the second most geographically widespread language in the world after English, with about 60 countries and territories having it as a de jure or de facto official, administrative, or cultural language. [1]