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Why learn French?
French is a very useful language
for travelling in many parts of the world. It is spoken as
a first language not only in France but also in parts of Belgium
and Switzerland as well as in Monaco and Luxembourg. Beyond
Europe, French is spoken in many African countries, as well
as the Caribbean and Canada.
Here at JMJ in Manchester, we
have taught French to two English couples applying to immigrate
into Canada, to a Japanese couple going to work in Geneva,
to a journalist going to work in Africa, as well as to many
businesspeople dealing in Europe and many private clients
wanting to learn French for fun and holidays.
French is a relatively easy language to learn. Britain and
France have had close ties at least since the Norman conquest,
getting on for a thousand years ago, and many French words
and expressions have been absorbed into English - for example:
je ne sais quoi, le mot juste, RSVP (répondez s'il
vous plaît).
If you really search your brain,
the chances are you know quite a lot of French words already.
How many of these do you recognise?
restaurant, vin, eau, bière, pain, beurre,
café, lait, sucre
maison, chambre, porte, fenêtre, chaise, table
blanc, rouge, noir, vert, bleu
grande, petit
monsieur, madame, mademoiselle
homme, femme, fille, garçon
je, tu, il, elle, nous, vous, ils, elles
être, avoir, parler, manger, porter, vendre
le, la, les
un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix
oui, non, s'il vous plaît, merci
avec, sans
ça va
voilà
bien, bon
bonjour, bonsoir, bonne nuit, au revoir
If you know even half of this
mixture of nouns, adjectives, verbs, pronouns and other words,
you are well on your way. All you need now is a teacher to
explain to you how French works, to put the words in context
for you and to faciliate your learning more of them.
Come on! If Marcus Brigstocke,
Esther Rantzen and Ron Atkinson can do it, you certainly can!
(Did you see the four-part BBC series Excuse My French? If
you missed it and you'd like a copy of the video, please contact
us.)
Où habitez-vous?
If you live in or near Manchester,
you could start a one-to-one
French course with us tomorrow (or whenever it suits you).
There is a large French-speaking
community in Manchester and you should have no trouble finding
people to talk to in French, to practise what you've learnt
in your lessons.
Recommended Reading
If you are interested in learning
French, you might like to have a look at the French
language books we recommend to accompany any course you
take or for maintaining/improving your French by yourself.
If you are planning a trip to France or French-speaking
Belgium, check out the guide
books available.
If you are interested in the life and culture
of France, have a look at our recommendations for books
about or set in France. These books are in English, a
range of fiction and non-fiction that we have enjoyed and
hope you will too.
Some Quick Facts About France
Language:
French. The following dialects are also spoken, to a limited
degree: Alsatian (a German dialect) in Alsace and parts of
Lorraine, Flemish (a Dutch dialect) in French Flanders, Breton
in Brittany, Provençal in Provence, Basque in the Bayonne
region, Catalan at the eastern end of the Pyrenees and Corsican
on the island of Corsica.
Capital city:
Paris
Regions:
Mainland (metropolitan) France is divided into the 21 regions
listed below. The 22nd on this list is the island of Corsica.
There are 4 other overseas territories that are part of the
Republic but not in the European Union. (For more information,
see the relevant
page on Wikipedia.)
Alsace
Aquitaine
Auvergne
Brittany (Bretagne)
Burgundy (Bourgogne)
Center (Centre)
Champagne-Ardenne
Corsica (Corse)
Franche-Comté
Languedoc-Roussillon
Limousin
Lorraine
Lower-Normandy (Basse-Normandie)
Midi-Pyrenees (Midi-Pyrénées)
North-Calais (Nord-Pas-de-Calais)
Paris-Isle-of-France (Île-de-France)
Pays-de-la-Loire
Picardy (Picardie)
Poitou-Charentes
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Rhône-Alpes
Upper-Normandy (Haute-Normandie)
Population:
63,587,700 (total, including overseas regions. 1st January
2006)
61,044,684 (metropolitan France. 1st January 2006)
Currency:
Euro
Religion:
Roman Catholic
Government:
Republic. Bicameral parliamentary system.
Internet domain:
.fr
Country calling code:
+33
If you are interested in learning more about France, you might
also like to look at the following websites:
Discover
France
Bonjour
la France
France Pub
Learn French at our school in Manchester:
- Tailor-made, one-to-one courses
- Intensive or longer-term courses
- Convenient Manchester location
Click here
to read more about our French courses.
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