One Nation, One Language: The Effects of the English on the French Language from 1914 to 1945

Indianapolis, IN

The French language has been important to the national identity of the French people since the Parisian dialect was made the official language in 1539. Since then, the language has been closely guarded against outside influences. This project will investigate changes in the French language from 1914 through 1945. Specifically, it will determine what affects the English language has had on French during this period. From 1914 through 1945, the French people were in close contact with American, British, and Canadian dialects providing ample opportunity for foreign words to become part of the French language. This project will examine the relationships between the French and the foreigners and how they affected the words and phrases imported into the French language. Since the French language is so closely guarded, word borrowings from foreign languages require multicultural events of a great scale. Such events as the creation of Jazz music created new words in both English and French.