https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed As French language fanatics kick up a storm about the new English slogan for the Paris 2024 Olympic bid, we take a look at other times the French have lost their cool when it comes to the English language. https://www.thelocal.fr/20170217/times-the-english-language-drove-the-french-mad Fri, 17 Feb 2017 17:02:54 +0100 times-the-english-language-drove-the-french-mad French dictionary Le Petit Larousse has announced that 150 new words will be accepted into their 2017 edition. And many of them have a distinctly English look about them. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160511/french-make-more-english-words-official Wed, 11 May 2016 14:29:26 +0200 french-make-more-english-words-official Language teachers have united to share the reasons the French find English so difficult. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160422/the-main-reasons-the-french-struggle-with-english Fri, 22 Apr 2016 11:11:55 +0200 the-main-reasons-the-french-struggle-with-english Moliere will be turning in his grave. The spoken French language has never sounded so English, according to a new study and experts. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160316/english-words-invading-french-like-never-before Wed, 16 Mar 2016 17:29:32 +0100 english-words-invading-french-like-never-before One of Paris’ most renowned higher-education establishments is offering free language courses to refugees as part of an integration scheme thought up by the university's students. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160308/prestigious-french-university-offers-language-courses-to-migrants Tue, 08 Mar 2016 11:53:27 +0100 prestigious-french-university-offers-language-courses-to-migrants While the average French person is unlikely to speak advanced English, many aren't afraid to lie about their competencies, according to a new study. https://www.thelocal.fr/20160108/just-four-percent-of-french-people-speak-fluent-english Fri, 08 Jan 2016 14:40:18 +0100 just-four-percent-of-french-people-speak-fluent-english Over ten thousand French school pupils have signed a petition calling for the education minister to strike out an "impossible" question from the English exam in this year's French high school baccalaureate. https://www.thelocal.fr/20150622/french-protest-impossible-english-exam-question Mon, 22 Jun 2015 12:02:37 +0200 french-protest-impossible-english-exam-question Two young French entrepreneurs think they've come up with the smart solution to help their compatriots improve their English as well as enjoy the influx of popular TV series from across the Atlantic. https://www.thelocal.fr/20150325/pair-invent-smart-subtitles-to-help-french-learn-english Wed, 25 Mar 2015 17:23:24 +0100 pair-invent-smart-subtitles-to-help-french-learn-english France is mulling reforms which would allow pupils to learn extra languages in school - but potentially at the cost of improving their English. https://www.thelocal.fr/20150309/french-students-to-learn-less-english Mon, 09 Mar 2015 14:40:00 +0100 french-students-to-learn-less-english The French are known to for their stubborn attempts to keep English out of their language, but it appears they haven't done a very good job of it. The Gallic language is full of expressions containing the word “anglais” and most aren't complimentary. https://www.thelocal.fr/20141218/the-french-languages-obsession-with-les-anglais Thu, 18 Dec 2014 10:25:00 +0100 the-french-languages-obsession-with-les-anglais Efforts to protect the French language are not just a preoccupation for authorities in France. Over the other side of the pond lawmakers in the southern US state of Louisiana are also doing their best to boost the language of Molière. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140520/louisiana-road-signs-french Tue, 20 May 2014 10:20:00 +0200 louisiana-road-signs-french This week French people were asked to submit and vote for their favourite newly-invented Gallic words, that in the future could find their place in a dictionary. The suggestions were both inventive and hilarious. We've selected ten of the best. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140328/top-ten-invented-french-words Fri, 28 Mar 2014 18:30:00 +0100 top-ten-invented-french-words While the French are notoriously protective of their sacred tongue, they aren’t so careful with other people’s languages, it seems, most notably English. The Local gathered a list of the some the French’s favourite ‘English’ words that aren’t Anglo at all. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140318/top-ten-english-words-reinvented-by-the-french Tue, 18 Mar 2014 14:05:00 +0100 top-ten-english-words-reinvented-by-the-french The Anglo reputation for their appetite for French beer may have hit a bizarre new high (or low) on Monday when French police revealed they had arrested a gang of thieves, including Irish and English nationals over a massive beer heist in northern France. https://www.thelocal.fr/20140121/english-and-irish-stole-thousands-of-litres-of-beer Tue, 21 Jan 2014 17:47:00 +0100 english-and-irish-stole-thousands-of-litres-of-beer When it comes to fighting off the invasion of English words the French Resistance has had mixed fortunes over the years. Nevertheless the fight goes on. With the help of the Ministry of Culture here's a list of the latest English terms that French authorities want deported. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130524/top-ten-english-terms-sparking-a-french-resistance Fri, 24 May 2013 19:49:00 +0200 top-ten-english-terms-sparking-a-french-resistance A contentious proposal that would see more courses at French universities taught in English was given the green light by deputies in the French parliament on Thursday. Critics say the move will lead to France losing its identity. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130523/mps-back-plan-for-more-english-at-french-unis Thu, 23 May 2013 16:07:00 +0200 mps-back-plan-for-more-english-at-french-unis A proposal to introduce more courses in English and other foreign languages at French universities is set to be debated in parliament from Wednesday amid concerns it will undermine the country's soul and identity. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130520/french-unions-threaten-strike-over-english-at-unis Mon, 20 May 2013 16:05:00 +0200 french-unions-threaten-strike-over-english-at-unis A controversial plan by the French government to allow universities to teach degree courses in English appears to have been watered down with the Minister for Higher Education suggesting it will only apply to one percent of courses. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130503/minister-backtracks-on-english-degree-courses-plan Fri, 03 May 2013 17:39:00 +0200 minister-backtracks-on-english-degree-courses-plan France’s Prime Minister has ordered his cabinet to stop using English terms and stick to French, after one minister called a new economic initiative the “Silver Economy.” It's the latest controversy in France over the use of English. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130430/frances-pm-tells-ministers-stop-using-english-words Tue, 30 Apr 2013 16:02:00 +0200 frances-pm-tells-ministers-stop-using-english-words On his much hyped visit to India on Thursday French president François Hollande greeted the press, not in his native French but in English. Hearing him speak "the language of Shakespeare" has raised a few eyebrows in the French press. Watch the video here. https://www.thelocal.fr/20130214/video-hollande-speaks-to-press-in-english Thu, 14 Feb 2013 18:18:00 +0100 video-hollande-speaks-to-press-in-english