French people
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The French people are the ethnic group or nation native to the country of France, in Western Europe. Their native language is the French language. Their main religion is Roman Catholic.
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Population dispersal
There are around 58 million ethnic French in France, and about 25 million ethnic French around the world.
- Wallonia and Brussels: 5 million people
- Switzerland: 100,000 people
- Luxembourg: 400,000 people
- Anglo-Normand Isles: 100,000 people
- Canada: 6 million people
- South America: 2 million people
- United States: between 10 and 13 million
There is a notable French diaspora in former French colonies as well.
Cultural influences
The French are a Western European population. Their ethnic origin is mainly a mixture of Celtic and Latin people. German influence was important only at the borders of the ancient Gaul. The contribute of these tribes was few because of their exiguous number.
The French language derives from Latin, a certain amount of Germanic words, and the Norsemen/Vikings who settled in Normandy. Minor influences were the Greeks, who created small semi-permanent commercial coastal establishments such as Marseille or Monaco and the pre-Celtic inhabitants.
As with all European countries, there has been in France a great deal of cultural diffusion from other European nations. These include German, English, Irish, Dutch, Flemish, Italian, and Spanish. A great number of Poles, Spaniards, Portuguese and Italians migrated to France from 1860-70 until 1960 and were assimilated.
Other languages of the French
The French don't only speak the French language. They speak regional languages, such as:
- Basque, a language spoken at the France-Spain border
- Asatian, a language spoken in the French province of Alsace
- Corsican, the language of Corsica, a French island
- Breton, the language of the French province of Brittany
- Provençal, a dialect of Occitan
- Catalan, a Romantic language spoken mostly in Spain
- Flemish, a dialect of Dutch
See also
External links
- [1] (http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/DF_people.shtml)
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