Is it possible that in the future French might become a major, important, and common language?

Question

I've heard that there aren't many French speakers in the world (only by the millions) compared to Chinese, Hindu, Arabic, and Spanish (by the billions). I just wanted to know because I'm learning French now and I want to be able to speak a common, important, and major language.

Answer 1

In terms of real world value, French is many, many times more important than Spanish. Along with being spoken on every continent, it was until a short time ago the international language of business and trade, and is still one of the two official languages of government and diplomacy. The US is even France's biggest investor =] That's why every passport in the world is printed with either English or French, along with the country's mother tongue. It's also the 3rd most spoken language in homes across the US with 1.9 million speakers and the second most widely taught foreign language in the world, after English.

Knowing French will open up so many opportunities for work in the future, ones that Spanish couldn't. Many volunteering abroad programs require a knowledge of French, because it is spoken across Africa, Southeast Asia, and Caribbean nations. It's also an official language of the UN, UNESCO, Red Cross, EU, NATO, UIA, OECD, International Olympic Committee, and has been officially ranked as the second most influential language in the world.

The French have also won more Nobel Prizes in literature than any other nation. French has also been shown to help you up to three times more than any other modern language on the verbal section of the SATs. When discussing international jobs, 72 percent of employers would prefer their workers to be fluent in French than any other foreign language, including Chinese, Russian, German, Arabic, and Spanish.

I could go on, but this should give you a basic idea =]

Answer 2

It used to be a language super power. you can still see remnants of it on almost every continent. 40+ countries speak it.

Answer 3

French as a foreign language is the second most frequently taught language in the world after English. The International Organization of Francophonie has 51 member states and governments. Of these, 28 countries have French as an official language. French is the only language other than English spoken on five continents. French and English are the only two global languages.

French is the national language in all 29 of these countries...

Belgium,Benin, Burkina-Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada,Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo

Djibouti, France,Gabon,Guinea,Haiti,Ivory Coast,Luxembourg,Madagascar,Mali,Monaco,... of Congo,Rwanda,Senegal,Seychelles,Switzerl...

Oddly enough all of these countries have French as a second language as they are part of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie

Bulgaria,Cambodia,Cape Verde,Dominica,Egypt, Equitorial Guinea,Guinea-Bissau,Laos,Lebanon,Morocc...

Saint-Lucia,Sao-Tomé et Principe,Tunisia,Vietnam

Louisiana and Main official declared French as their state language.

So you be the judge if you think it's common enough for your future use.

Answer 4

What's to debate it's simple!!

FRENCH (29 official 1st language nations + 22 2nd language nations) V's 23 Spanish speaking nations.

It is what it is.. Clearly there are more French speaking countries then Spanish. Which also means that there is a much larger popluation speaking French!!

Answer 5

Not in the US..sorry.  

Answer 6

I agree it is extremely popular around the world.

In fact it is more spoken then Spanish. However, the USA view is that Spanish is more of a worldly then French. But that is statistically incorrect!

Answer 7

I have always found French to be an important and commonly spoken language. When examining the importance of a language, you don't merely look at native speakers, but at the many people who learn French as a second language and who use it to communicate with other non-native speakers. In other words, you should not merely look at the number  of native speakers, but at the strategic importance. Admittedly French does not have the importance it had half a century ago in Europe (when it was the essential language for travel, as most Europeans learned it in school), but it is still very important indeed and spoken all over the world.  

Answer 8

No.  Chinese, Spanish and Hindi (not Hindu) are much more important languages, numerically speaking.

Answer 9

Sorry, If there was a language to take over the position of English It would be spanish!

Answer 10

I think it's already spoken in like 40 countries... Canada and France are probably the only two you'd ever live in. Most of the other countries are in Africa