Considered by many as the language of culture and diplomacy, the French language is widely spoken in the world as consequence of colonial era following the French Revolution. The list below is an prime example of the widespread influence of Victor Hugo’s language:
| Country | Languages (%) |
|---|---|
| Algeria | Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects |
| Andorra | Catalan (official), French, Castilian, Portuguese |
| Argentina | Spanish (official), Italian, English, German, French |
| Belgium | Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%, legally bilingual (Dutch and French) |
| Benin | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
| Burkina Faso | French (official), native African languages belonging to Sudanic family spoken by 90% of the population |
| Burundi | Kirundi (official), French (official), Swahili (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area) |
| Cambodia | Khmer (official) 95%, French, English |
| Cameroon | 24 major African language groups, English (official), French (official) |
| Canada | English (official) 59.3%, French (official) 23.2%, other 17.5% |
| Central African Republic | French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages |
| Chad | French (official), Arabic (official), Sara (in south), more than 120 different languages and dialects |
| Comoros | Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili and Arabic) |
| Congo, Democratic Republic of the | French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, Tshiluba |
| Congo, Republic of the | French (official), Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread) |
| Cote d'Ivoire | French (official), 60 native dialects with Dioula the most widely spoken |
| Djibouti | French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar |
| Dominica | English (official), French patois |
| Egypt | Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes |
| Equatorial Guinea | Spanish 67.6% (official), other 32.4% (includes French (official), Fang, Bubi) (1994 census) |
| European Union | Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, Gaelic, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish
note: only official languages are listed; German, the major language of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, is the most widely spoken mother tongue - over 19% of the EU population; English is the most widely spoken language - about 49% of the EU population is conversant with it (2007) |
| France | French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish)
overseas departments:French, Creole patois |
| French Polynesia | French 61.1% (official), Polynesian 31.4% (official), Asian languages 1.2%, other 0.3%, unspecified 6% (2002 census) |
| Gabon | French (official), Fang, Myene, Nzebi, Bapounou/Eschira, Bandjabi |
| Greece | Greek 99% (official), other 1% (includes English and French) |
| Grenada | English (official), French patois |
| Guernsey | English, French, Norman-French dialect spoken in country districts |
| Guinea | French (official); note - each ethnic group has its own language |
| Haiti | French (official), Creole (official) |
| Holy See (Vatican City) | Italian, Latin, French, various other languages |
| Italy | Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area) |
| Laos | Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages |
| Lebanon | Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian |
| Luxembourg | Luxembourgish (national language), German (administrative language), French (administrative language) |
| Madagascar | English (official), French (official), Malagasy (official) |
| Mali | French (official), Bambara 80%, numerous African languages |
| Mauritania | Arabic (official and national), Pulaar, Soninke, Wolof (all national languages), French, Hassaniya |
| Mauritius | Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4%, English (official; spoken by less than 1% of the population), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census) |
| Mayotte | Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population |
| Monaco | French (official), English, Italian, Monegasque |
| Morocco | Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often the language of business, government, and diplomacy |
| New Caledonia | French (official), 33 Melanesian-Polynesian dialects |
| Niger | French (official), Hausa, Djerma |
| Rwanda | Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French (official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in commercial centers |
| Saint Barthelemy | French (primary), English |
| Saint Lucia | English (official), French patois |
| Saint Martin | French (official language), English, Dutch, French Patois, Spanish, Papiamento (dialect of Netherlands Antilles) |
| Saint Pierre and Miquelon | French (official) |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | English, French patois |
| Senegal | French (official), Wolof, Pulaar, Jola, Mandinka |
| Switzerland | German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 20.4%, Italian (official) 6.5%, Serbo-Croatian 1.5%, Albanian 1.3%, Portuguese 1.2%, Spanish 1.1%, English 1%, Romansch (official) 0.5%, other 2.8% (2000 census)
note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national and official languages |
| Syria | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood |
| Togo | French (official and the language of commerce), Ewe and Mina (the two major African languages in the south), Kabye (sometimes spelled Kabiye) and Dagomba (the two major African languages in the north) |
| Trinidad and Tobago | English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese |
| Tunisia | Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce) |
| Vanuatu | local languages (more than 100) 72.6%, pidgin (known as Bislama or Bichelama) 23.1%, English 1.9%, French 1.4%, other 0.3%, unspecified 0.7% (1999 Census) |
| Vietnam | Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) |
| Virgin Islands | English 74.7%, Spanish or Spanish Creole 16.8%, French or French Creole 6.6%, other 1.9% (2000 census) |
| Wallis and Futuna | Wallisian 58.9% (indigenous Polynesian language), Futunian 30.1%, French 10.8%, other 0.2% (2003 census) |
| World | Mandarin Chinese 13.22%, Spanish 4.88%, English 4.68%, Arabic 3.12%, Hindi 2.74%, Portuguese 2.69%, Bengali 2.59%, Russian 2.2%, Japanese 1.85%, Standard German 1.44%, French 1.2% (2005 est.)
note: percents are for "first language" speakers only |
Source: CIA – The World Factbook