The importance of French language and why should it be learned :-

Being the second most taught language internationally after English, and having a readership and following which are commiserate with the number of its students, French is definitely the language to know these days. With English, French is the only other “international” language, being spoken in 5 continents. The international body supervising the following of French as a language is known as the International Organization of Francophonie, which has 67  countries as its member states and out of these 67  states, 28 countries have French as their official language.

The widespread use of French as a language can also be inferred from the fact that French, with English is the official language of many towering organizations of the world, such as the UN, NATO, UNESCO, the International Red Cross Association and IOC (The International Olympic Committee), to name a few. From a recent survey, it has been noted that almost 70% of jobs in the US require or prefer the aspirants who know French, other than English, which is a testimony to the importance of French.

The importance of French has demographic and economic consequences for major economies in the world, even the US. For example, French is the official global language of Canada, which caries out major trade deals with the US. The knowledge of French for traders to such countries becomes all the more important when you realize that Canada, for example, has provinces like Quebec, which trades more than 70 billion Dollars annually with the US, and the major international language being followed there is French.

Apart from the economic influence of French and France, there is a high degree of intellectual importance associated with French as a language and the French thought for modernism and secularism. French doctors and scientists have been the fore-runners of technology in the modern era. France has the largest R&D center on nuclear physics in the world and also boasts as being the site of the world’s first nuclear fusion reactor. The French doctors were the first to isolate the HIV virus from the body of an infected human being- a ground breaking attempt to find a cure for AIDS. In order to decipher all their findings and discoveries, to understand their intellect and to admire it, it has become inevitable for the intelligentsia and researchers of today to adopt French as a global language.

Reasons to study French

• It is not limited to one or two continents.
• French is spoken in two of the G7 countries.
• France is the world's major tourist destination (60 million tourists a year).
• France is Europe's foremost investor abroad.
• France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany have the lowest rates of inflation in the European Union. This is an indicator of the health of these countries.
• France is in 4th position in terms of world power and it does not have the debt problems facing many other major industrialized nations. (A positive sign for joint projects, business and scientific co-operation).
• France is renowned for the quality of its high tech,. (The TGV is the fastest train in the world - 515 kph).
• French is the official language of the International Red Cross.
• French is one of the official languages of post offices across the world.
• France is one of the two official languages at the Olympic Games.
• French-speaking Africa represents an area larger than the USA.
• French is the most widely taught second language after English.
• French is one of the official languages of the United Nations.
• Over 20,000 English words have their origins in French.
• In terms of number of words, French is the second largest language after English.
• Paris had 1,100 congresses in 1993 (including 400 international congresses) - a world record.
• France has the world's greatest number of Nobel Prize winners in literature (12).
• Montreal is the second largest French speaking city in the world.
• Le Courrier Australien, founded in 1892, is the oldest ethnic newspaper in Australia.
• Paris is considered the capital of the world in terms of quality of life (Healey and Baker 1991).
• Megabucks for trade: In 1994 the United States did business/trade with the following countries in order of importance: 1. French speaking countries; 2. Japan; 3. Spanish speaking countries.
• A good knowledge of French enables you to fully enjoy, at the cinema or on TV, the best films from the French speaking world.
• Learning French can help you improve the interpersonal skills you bring to your international career.
• You can do so many more interesting things on the internet if you speak French. There are many high quality internet sites available in French, ranging from fashion to finance; society to science; music to medicine… just to mention a few.

Motivations for learning French

Tick your own motivations and number them according to their importance.

1. I like the beauty and charm of the French language. I like the way the language sounds.
2. I travel or I plan to travel to France or to a French speaking country.
3. I would like to work for an international institution / organization, or on diplomatic services, and French is compulsory.
4. I would like to work in the tourism and hotel industry.
5. I would like to communicate with French or French speaking people using their own language.
6. I think it’s important to know an international language other than English. It can be useful one day.
7. I would like to study in France.
8. I would like to work in a French company.
9. I love the atmosphere of the French classes. Its fun. I meet friends there.
10. Other (please specify).