French has that “Je ne sais quoi”

French has that certain something about it, that special power of attraction, that “je ne sais quoi!”

So perhaps it isn’t surprising to find that French is the second-most widely used language in the world after English, and it isn’t surprising to find that French is very useful in the world of business.

                                            Source Photo: Môsieur J.

In fact, the weekly business magazine Bloomberg Businessweekproclaimed French as one of the top three most useful languages after English and Chinese. Indeed, French is often employed in commerce, diplomacy, literature and in matters of science.

A European Union Commission survey found the language to be the fourth-most widely used mother tongue in all of the EU group of nations. French is also reported to be the third most commonly understood language in all of the EU.

A report made in 2014 by La Francophonie estimated that 274 million people speak French in the world today. A “Francophone,” by the way, is any French speaking person or nation.

French is officially recognised in  as many as 29 countries, including France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Monaco. It is also used in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, as well as many other parts of Africa, including Chad, Gabon, Mauritius, Madagascar, the Ivory Coast and Senegal.

In Asia, French is in use in Puducherry in India, and also in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. It is an official administrative language in these last two countries.

French is also spoken in French Polynesia, and in the Pacific Island of Vanuatu as many as 45% of the population speak the language. In New Caledonia the figure goes up to 97%.

French is the official language in Guadeloupe, French Guiana and Martinique, and not forgetting the Republic of Haiti where it is also spoken. There are French-based Creole languages with Haitian Creole being an example.

French is used in the provinces of New Brunswick and Ontario in Quebec in Canada, and widely spoken in the American states of Louisiana, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

With so many French-speaking countries, and so many uses for the language in the world today, it comes as no surprise to find that courses in Business French are readily available. French can be the subject of a more serious academic study too and “French for Business” is on offer at Warwick University for example.

In the Canary Islands and so many other parts of the world today, it can really help your chances at getting ahead with your chosen career if you are fluent in a second or a third international language.

With French being currently used in so many places on the global stage it is obviously one of the best languages to learn and add to your CV. It makes very good sense to “Parler Français!”

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