European French vs. Canadian French, What's the Difference?

Canadian French & European French: Origin

The different dialects of French spoken in Canada are generally known as Canadian French. The Quebec French and all the other dialects used in other Francophone communities throughout the country, especially in Ontario and New Brunswick, are also a part of the Canadian French. The Quiet Revolution of the 1960s made French the primary language of business and increased its preference over English to be used as an official language in Canada.

The variety of French spoken in Europe, in France, in French-speaking countries or areas is generally known as European French. With an approximate total of 80 million people who speak French, Europe sums up for around 40% of the total number of worldwide francophones.

Difference between European and Canadian French

Both Canadian French, as well as European French are different from each other in terms of the area or the country where they are spoken. Moreover, the vocabulary, idioms, slang, cultural references, and expressions used in Canadian French do not exist in their European form. The less formal and spoken form of the Canadian French language showcases a lot of differences from Continental or Metropolitan French.

Space is included before some punctuations like the semicolon, exclamation, or question mark in Continental French. Canadian French, on the other hand, has more nasal intonation, resulting in the vowel sounds shifting.

There are widespread differences between Canadian French and European French, which become more evident when the formal/informal and spoken/written forms of the languages come into use.

Regional Differences between Canadian French & European French

1. Accents

For most of the non-universal languages that develop overseas, the Canadian French accent, intonations, and pronunciations are the main points that create the difference between the Metropolitan/Continental French and the Canadian French spoken by the Québécois.

2. Formality

Canadian French is referred to as the Metropolitan French, and the Québécois as the Canadian French. But the use of idioms, words, cultural references, and expressions makes Canadian French more of an informal language in comparison to European French.

3. Grammar

Prepositions are shortened in the Québécois (Canadian French), and Que is used as a relative pronoun for general purposes, often leading to confusion. The varying degrees of difference in the syntax of the two languages give a clear indication of the unique grammatical structure of Quebec as compared to the Europeans.

4. Vowels

The vowel sounds, along with the alphabet Y, sometimes make use of a lot of nasal intonations in Canadian French. This, along with the speed of vowel pronunciation, creates variations in the two forms of the French language.

5. Vocab, Slang words, etc.

Most of the vocabulary and slang words used in Canadian French are derived from the First Nation languages. A lot of English words and phrases have also been adopted into the language without any alteration.

The use of Anglicisms and first Nation language words makes Canadian French not only different from European French but also quite old in a lot of ways, as the Canadians still use 17th-century words from the era when the French had started settling in Canada.

6. Terminology & Language Regulations

The terminology and language regulations in specific fields like legal, education, and healthcare are also different in the two types of French. For example, Quebec's legal system is based on French Civil Law, but a lot of traditional French terms are used with different meanings as compared to their use in France. The translation of the two languages and their use in business signs, menus, displays, etc., are all governed by language restrictions.

The points mentioned above clearly show that the difference between the two languages is not just about the accent but much more than that, as the plethora of regional accents and dialects of the French language make the learning incredibly worthwhile, and their uniqueness provides a personality to the region they represent.  

Some Interesting Facts about Canadian French

There are certain facts about Canadian French that are rather quite peculiar and definitely worth knowing for all language aficionados. These facts go beyond the language’s linguistic norms or expressions and instead deal with its idiosyncrasy and identity. Read ahead to find out more.

• According to the Official Languages Act of 1969, English and French are recognized among the 11 official languages spoken within Canada.
• However, only 21% of the population speaks Canadian French, while English is the spoken language of 57% of the Canadian population.
• Interestingly, even while the percentages mentioned above show them to be a minority, French Canadians are a majority of the population (approx. 7 million) in the Province de Québec.
• Preservation of their linguistic roots is of utmost importance for many French speaking Canadians. They are people with an extreme passion for their language and different factors that have been a part of their culture for centuries.
• Popularly known as “Bill 10”, the Charter of the French Language is a bill that legally protects the Canadian French language in Québec. The aim of this bill is to define the linguistic rights given to all Québec citizens. It also declares French as the official Québec language in commerce, business, labor, education, and administration.

These laws based on the linguistic usage of the Canadian French language have had some fascinating impacts on the everyday lives of the Canadian French population.

• An Italian restaurant in 2013 received a lot of pressure to remove the word “pasta” from the menu since it was not a French word.
• A restaurant in Québec named La Mama Grilled Cheese was sent a letter by the language agency in 2016 chastising them for their Anglicism.
• Air Canada was fined in 2019 for not using the French language and giving less prominence to the French version of some signs on a domestic flight.
• However, as of the present day, such linguistic restrictions have loosened their grip a little as the usage of words like “cocktails,” “drag queen,” and “grilled cheese” has been allowed.

All such differences between the Canadian and European French have a prominent amount of impact on the lives of people using these languages in different regions. European French speakers constitute 40% of the global total. Whereas Canadian French is spoken by approximately 7.2 million Canadians (22.8 percent of the Canadian population).

As can be seen from the above examples, languages, and laws pertaining to their usage are something people tend to attach to their identities.

Looking for professional translation services? Look no further. Lingual Consultancy is a reliable translation company that provides you with the high quality translation services in more than 250 languages covering all the major Indian, Asian, European, Latin American, and African languages and including other rare languages. We have a pool of more than 16000 translators/transcribers/interpreters across the globe who provide top-notch translation services every time.

Contact us today to get started.