The Competition Between French and English in EU

 When Macron was first elected president of France in May 2017, he spelled out his "French-speaking dream" -- "The glory of the French, the attraction of the French, is not just for France." He wants French to be "the first language of Africa and the first language of the world". He also mentioned the best ways to learn French.

Now, the newly re-elected Macron also has to admit: in today's economic globalization, English is becoming the first international language, and its influence has penetrated into every field in France.

France's language regulator, the Academie Francaise, has repeatedly warned that the French language and culture are being eroded by the English culture, which is undermining social cohesion and has called on the government to develop countermeasures.

On May 30, 2022, the French Ministry of Culture revised its rules on the use of video game terms, requiring government workers to ban English video game terms in a bid to preserve the purity of the French language. The French government is also planning to push for French to replace English within the EU.

The seven worst-affected areas where the French language has been "polluted"

Yan Ni, who has a master's degree in linguistics at the University of Nantes in France, found that Young French people often mix English into everyday communication, such as shopping and email.

When traveling in big cities in France, many locals saw her Asian face and even greeted her directly in English. For Tara, who learned pure French as an undergraduate in China, it took some time to get used to this kind of french-English communication.

Chen Yifei, who lived in France for nearly 10 years and taught at a Confucius Institute, also felt the influence of English on French: French has many English words in it, and people often use French and English together in daily life. On social networks, some young people use English to refer to new words such as followers and live.

According to a 2016 study published by The French newspaper Le Parisien, 90 per cent of French people blend into English while speaking French. "Moliere, the French classical writer of the 17th century, will rise from his grave when he sees this phenomenon," the newspaper said. You can love it or hate it, but no one can get rid of it."

Jean Maillet, a French linguist and former professor of English, lamented similarly, "We've never had so many English words in our French language, up to 10 percent, and it's growing exponentially."

According to Jean Mellet, part of the reason so many English words have taken over French is "linguistic laziness", as many English words are shorter and easier to use than French ones. The frequent presence of English in advertising and the media has also had a big impact on French youth.

As early as 1999, the French Association for the Defence of The French language once published a survey report on the State of French, and listed seven areas where foreign words "pollute" The French language: consumption and advertising, labor and employment.