French (le français) is the third-largest of the Romance languages in terms of number of native speakers, after Spanish and Portuguese, being spoken by about 120 million people as a mother tongue or fluently. As a Romance language, it is a daughter language of Latin, although there has been significant borrowing from Ancient Greek.

It is an official language in 30 countries.

French is also an official or administrative language in several communities and international organisations (such as the European Union, International Olympic Committee, World Trade Organization, NATO, FINA, FIA, UCI, FIFA, World Anti-Doping Agency, United Nations, African Union, International Court of Justice, IHO, International Secretariat for Water, International Political Science Association, International Bureau of Weights and Measures, European Broadcasting Union, ESA, Universal Postal Union, Interpol and so on) and is among the six official languages of the United Nations and of all its agencies. While the status of French as the leading language for international communication has declined since its peak in the 18th and 19th centuries due to the rise of English, it maintains a prominent position.

Legal Status in France

Per the Constitution of France, French has been the official language since 1992. France mandates the use of French in official government publications, public education outside of specific cases (though these dispositions are often ignored) and legal contracts; advertisements must bear a translation of foreign words.

Contrary to a common misunderstanding both in the American and British media, France does not prohibit the use of foreign words in websites nor in any other private publication, as that would violate the constitutional right of freedom of speech. The misunderstanding may have arisen from a similar prohibition in the Canadian province of Quebec which made strict application of the Charter of the French Language between 1977 and 1993, although these regulations addressed language used in advertising and the provision of commercial services offered within the province, not the language of private communication.

There exist in addition to French a variety of languages spoken in France by minorities.

Regional Varieties	Regional Varieties
Acadian French	African French
Aostan French	Belgian French
Cajun French	Canadian French
Cambodian French	Metropolitan French
German French	Indian French
Jersey Legal French	Lao French
Levantine French	Maghreb French
Meridional French	New Caledonian French
Newfoundland French	North American French
Oceanic French	Quebec French
South East Asian French	Swiss French
Vietnamese French	West Indian French

Derived Languages	Derived Languages
Antillean Creole	Haitian Creole
Lanc-Patuá	Mauritian Creole
Michif	Louisiana Creole French
Réunionese Creole	Seychellois Creole
Tay Boi

List of countries where French is an official language

Belgium	Benin
Burkina Faso	Burundi
Cameroon	Canada
Central African Republic	Chad
Comoros	Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo	Côte d'Ivoire
Djibouti	Equatorial Guinea
France	Gabon
Guinea	Haiti
Luxembourg	Madagascar
Mali	Mauritania
Monaco	Niger
Rwanda	Senegal
Seychelles	Switzerland
Togo	Vanuatu

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