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A man from Labé, Guinea, speaking Pular and West African French. 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.
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]
Only half of Dakar residents identify with a Francophone status or feel solidarity with French-speaking countries, but the French language is seen as essential for everyday affairs and education. [73] French was the language of literacy for 37.2% of the population in 2013, followed by Arabic at 11.1%.
Additionally, languages like French, and Portuguese have become native languages in various countries. French has become native in the urban areas of the DRC, [17] and Gabon. [18] German was once used in Germany's colonies there from the late 1800s until World War I, when Britain and France took over and revoked German's official status.
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]
French is still a lingua franca in most Western and Central African countries and an official language of many, a remnant of French and Belgian colonialism. These African countries and others are members of the Francophonie. French is the official language of the Universal Postal Union, with English added as a working language in 1994. [46
A language that uniquely represents the national identity of a state, nation, and/or country and is so designated by a country's government; some are technically minority languages. (On this page a national language is followed by parentheses that identify it as a national language status.) Some countries have more than one language with this ...
Manitoba has a particular French Language Services Policy [73] and bilingual in capital city Winnipeg, as well as a special law on recognition of seven indigenous languages. [74] Nova Scotia has a governmental agency for Scots Gaelic language and culture affairs. [75] French is regionally spoken, with a special law on French-language services. [76]