The Global Advisor Newsletter

Thirty-first Edition - Canadian French

Canada is officially a bilingual country, with a population that speaks English and/or French. Canadian French is the name given to the type of French spoken in Canada, that is really the umbrella name of a number of dialects that differ from standard French (the French spoken in France and Belgium, for example) in terms of pronunciation and vocabulary. Two of the most important Canadian French dialects are Québécois and Acadian.

Québécois

Of the twenty four percent of Canadians who speak French as their first language, ninety-five percent live in Quebec - the only Canadian province where French is the official language. Although it is possible to live in Quebec speaking only English, French predominates and, according to the 1996 Interdepartmental Committee report on the French language, proficiency in French has increased in Canada during the last twenty years. Today, more Quebecers speak French on a daily basis, and more Anglophones and allophones (immigrants whose first language is neither English nor French.) are able to communicate in French.

In addition, the percentage of persons who use French at work 90% of the time or more has also increased throughout Quebec (from 84% in 1971 to 88% in 1989). The increase is more pronounced in the Montreal region, where it grew from 42% to 56%. In Montreal, commercial signage is mostly in French and the majority of Montreal businesses serve consumers mainly in French. Most young immigrants attend French-language schools, whereas before the adoption of the French Language Charter, only about 20% of young allophones attended French schools.

Québécois, differs from standard French in pronunciation and lexicon. The following are some of the differences in pronunciation:

	Quebecers tend to affricate1 dental stops – such as the consonants t and d before high front vowels and semivowels, like u and i, so the second person pronoun tu, represented by the phoneme /ty/ in French, becomes /tsy/ in Québécois. Example: tu es parti is pronounced tsu es partsi.
	The masculine and feminine adjectives petit and petite, pronounced /p@ti/ and /p@tit/ in standard French, are pronounced /p@tsi/ and /p@tsIt/ in Québécois.
	Long vowels and vowels pronounced with a nasal sound in standard French, are dipthongized² in Québécois so, for example, père (father), /pE:r/ in France, becomes /pEjr/ in Québécois, and banque (bank), /ba~k/ in standard French, is pronounced /ba~w~k/ in Québécois.
	The pronoun il sounds like y. Examples: Il est malade sounds like Y’est malade; Il y a pas le temps like Y'a pas le temps. Similarly, the feminine pronoun elle is contracted, so it sounds like a. Examples: elle a sounds like aa; elle a pas le temps sounds like aa pas le temps and elle a mal au dos like aa mal au dos.
	Chu is the contraction of Je suis, so Chu fatigué means Je suis fatigué and Chu en retard means Je suis en retard.
	Some words are pronounced with a t sound that is not heard in standard French, for example: Il fait froid is pronounced Il fait frette; mon lit becomes mon litte and ici sounds like icitte.
	Oi is pronounced like oé, as in the old days, so moi sounds like moé and Québécois like Québécoés.
	Tu is frequently added to questions, as in Il en veut-tu? Tu m'écoutes-tu? Je l'ai-tu?
	Québécois often end their statements with T’sais (a contractionof tu sais – You know?)
	Older speakers often roll the r instead of pronouncing it as a fricative³ as in standard French.

English influence on Québécois: Franglais used in Quebec, examples are phrases such as:

avoir un good time
être cheap
être opène
faire son show

and words like: slaquer, bummer, checker.

On the other hand, some of the Anglicisms that are frequent in standard French, have remained purely French in Québécois. There is a joke about the differences between standard French and Québécois: In Quebec on se parque dans un stationnement, while in France or Belgium on se gare dans un parking .

Examples of standard French Anglicisms that do not exist in Québécois:

Standard French	Québécois	English translation
week-end	fin de semaine	weekend
e-mail*	courriel	e-mail
Mèl*	courriel	e-mail

(*NB: France is promoting the use of courriel instead of e-mail.)

Other expressions are completely French, but derived from English. Example:

Standard French	Québécois	English translation
Congère	Banc de neige	Snowbank

Examples of old-fashioned Québécois expressions:

English term	Term in Québécois	Term in standard French
to wait	espérer	attendre
backyard	cour	jardin
courthouse	palais de justice	tribunal

Some Québécois idiomatic expressions do not exist in standard French. Examples:

Québécois idiom	English translation
mets-en	I'll say
s'en venir	arrive, come here
fait que	so

The use of sacrer (as in sacre bleu! être en sacre (to be mad), etc.) is also inherent to Québécois. The familiar pronoun tu is used more frequently in Québécois than in standard French.

Differences in lexicon:

The following is a list of English words and how they translate into standard French and Québécois:

In English…	En France…	Au Québec...
small shop	un petit magasin	un dépanneur
agreed	c'est d'accord	tiguidou
at this time	à cette heure	asteure
bank	une banque	une caisse populaire
beer	une bière	une broue
bicycle	une bicyclette	un bécyque
blueberry	une myrtille	un bluet
breakfast	le petit déjeuner	le déjeuner
cap	une casquette	une calotte
car	une automobile	un char
cat	un chat	un minou
cranberry	une airelle	une canneberge
dinner	le dîner	le souper
dog	un chien	un pitou
dollar	un dollar	une piastre
film, movie	un film	une vue
flashlight	une lampe-torche	une lampe de poche
lunch	le déjeuner	le dîner
money	de l'argent	des bidoux / du foin
not at all	pas du tout	pantoute
not too bad	c'est pas terrible	c'est pas varjeux
now	maintenant	présentement
rains	il pleut	il mouille
refrigerator	un réfrigérateur	un frigidaire
stop	le stop	l'arrêt
thing	une chose	une patente
to caress, stroke	caresser	minoucher
to cry	pleurer	brailler
to disturb someone	déranger quelqu'un	achaler / gosser
to do the shopping	faire ses emplettes	faire ses commissions ou son épicerie
to drive a car	conduire un véhicule	chauffer
to get in (a car)	monter (dans une voiture)	embarquer (dans un char)
to get out (of a car)	descendre (d'une voiture)	débarquer (d'un char)
to go shopping	se promener dans les magasins	magasiner
to look off color, under the weather	avoir mauvaise mine	faire dur
to look tired	avoir l'air fatigué	avoir les yeux dans la graisse de binnes
toys	des jouets	des bébelles
weekend	le week-end	la fin de semaine
you are nice	tu es gentil	tu es fin
you're welcome	de rien	bienvenu

Acadian French:

Acadian was the language spoken by the French pioneers who settled Nova Scotia in the 17^th Century. Expelled by the British in 1755, the Acadians scattered among the thirteen English colonies, from Massachusetts to Georgia and to Europe. Acadian French is the ancestor of Cajun, a French dialect of Louisiana.

The Acadians were allowed to return to Nova Scotia in 1764. However, they were not allowed to form large settlements and many of their former farms and villages had been occupied by British settlers, so they were forced to relocate in the less fertile areas along the coast. Today more than 40,000 Acadians may be found in various areas of Nova Scotia, such as the counties of Digby, Guysborough, Yarmouth, Richmond and Iverness, in Isle Madame (the largest island in an archipelago situated off the southwest coast of Cape Breton Island) and in the urban regions of Halifax-Dartmouth and Sydney.

Acadian French is a descendant of the French dialects of Anjou and Poitou, and retains some of the features that were eliminated from standard French during the standardization efforts of the 19th century, including an alveolar⁴ r, and the pronunciation of the final syllable in the third person plural verb form. Many French speakers find Acadian French archaic - reminiscent of the language of .Molière and Rabelais – and difficult to understand.

The following is a list of Acadian expressions with their standard French translation and direct translation (and interpretation) in English:

Acadian French expression	In standard French	Literal English translation (Interpretation)
C'est poin la marre a boire.	C'est pas la mer a boire.	It's not like drinking the sea. (It is not a big deal.).
C'ti la qui veut toute parre toute.	Celui qui désire tout, perds tou.	He who wants everything, loses everything.
Chuési prend pire	Choisi prend pire.	What is chosen is the worst. (Be careful what you wish for.)
C'est l'ezo qui s'leve tôt qu'attrape la lége.	C'est l'oiseau qui se lève tôt qu'attrape la lège	It is the bird that rises early that catches the light. (The early bird gets the worm.)
C'est seulement en forgeant que l'on devient forgeron	C'est rinque en forginw qu'on edvin forgerinw.	It is only by doing that we learn. (Learn by doing.)
C'est la plume qui fait l'ezo.	C'est la plume qui fait l'oiseau.	Feathers make the bird. (Clothes make the man/woman.)
Gratter des coques a marée haute.	Arracher des coques a marée haute.	Digging clams at high tide. (A difficult task.)
Te far prende avec les chulottes abâs.	Te faire prendre au dépourvu.	Getting caught with your pants down.
Baille'i dla botte.	Donne lui de la botte.	Give him boot. (Give it all you've got.)
Gas à la place. (Gas in place.)	L'accélérateur au fond. (The accelerator at the bottom.)	Pedal to the metal.
Ça fra ça que ça fra.	Ça fera ce que ça fera.	(Whatever will be will be.)
Par la cheue d'sa chmise.	Par la queue de sa chemise	By the shirt tail. (By the seat of the pants.)
La brume su l'échine.	La brume dur le dos (pressé).	Fog hardens the back. (In a rush.)
Chins des beurtelles.	Tiens tes bretelles.	Hold on to your straps.
Chins tes chulottes.	Tiens des pantalons.	Keep your pants on
Hâle tes cans. (Tan your edges.)	Allons! Hâte!	Come on! Hurry!
Ça sounne la 'tin can'.	Ça sonne comme une boîte en fer blanc.	That sounds like a tin can.
Ej nous r'warrinw.	On se reverra.	We'll see each other again. (We'll meet again.)
C'est wôuellment cheute-affarre.	C'est vraiment quelque chose.	It is really something.
Grand djeu de djeu!	Grand Dieu de Dieu!	Great God of God. (Good Lord.)
Saquerjé.	Sacré Dieu!	Good Lord!
C'est in point-d'esprit. (It is in point-of spirit. )	Il est quelqu'un à l'esprit lent. (He is someone with a slow spirit.)	(He is a bit slow.)
H'en ai une tapée.	J'en ai beaucoup.	I have many.
À la sainte et bounne heure.	À la Sainte et Bonne Heure.	With Holy and Good Hour. (All in good time.)
Y mouille à boire deboute.	Il pleut à boire debout.	It is raining enough to drink standing up.
Y grouille coumme dla m'lasse dans janvier	Il bouge lentement comme de la molasse en janvier.	He moves as slow as molasses in January.
Le temps m'dure.	Que le temps me dure.	That time may last me. (I can't wait.)
Dar-dye!	Mon Dieu!	Oh my!
C'est du temps dl'arche.	C'est du temps de l'arche.	From the time of the Arc. (From Biblical times.)
Djâble le sait.	Le Diable le sait	The Devil knows.
Cheuil compâssion	Quelle compassion	What compassion. (What a case!)
Véter pendu.	Je veux être pendu.	I want to be hanged. (I'll be darned.)
I' a pouonne inventé le boutinw à quatre trous.	Il n'a pas inventé le bouton à quatre trous.	He did not invent the button with four holes. (He is not the sharpest pencil in the box.)
I' en n'a pas les cars. (He does not have a bus.)	Il en n'a pas beaucoup.	He does not have much.
C'est pas les cars. (It is not the bu.)	Ce n'est rien de merveilleux.	It is nothing marvelous. (It is nothing special.)
C'est pas dla ragouillasse.	Ce n'est pas de la ragouillasse. (ragouillasse : préparation culinaire grossière (de ragoût suffixé péjorativement en -asse) : on trouve d'habitude ragougnasse.)	This is not low class stuff.
C'est râre coumme des dents d'poule.	C'est rare comme des dents de poule.	Rare as teeth on a chicken.
Quoi ça mange l'hivar ça?	Que es ce que cela ça mange l'hiver?	What is it that eats Winter? (What is this all about?)
Trop d'far au feu.	Trop de fer au feu.	Too many irons in the fire.
Pour bin farre.	Pour bien le faire	To be sure.
Aussi vite que cracher atarre.	Aussi vite que cracher par terre.	As quick as spitting on the ground.
'Oir si!	Voir si!	(Better believe it!)
La babine su vingt-neuf.	La lèvre d'en bas sur vingt-neuf.	The lip at the bottom of twenty-nine. (Long in the tooth or has a long face)
Quand c'qui lâ dequois à la téte, il lâ poin aux pieds.	Quand il a quelque chose dans la tête, il ne l'a pas aux pieds.	When he has something in his head, he does not have it with the feet. (When his mind is made up, there is no changing it.)
Être 'poin su son assiette.	Pas sur son assiette.	Not on his plate (Not in a good mood.)
Pauvre coumme in rat d'église.	Pauvre comme un rat d'église.	Poor as a church rat. (Poor as a church mouse.)
Pour l'amour de Djeu.	Pour l'amour de Dieu.	For the love of God.
Véter damné.	Je veux être damné.	(I'll be darned.)
Que l'bon Djeu te bénisse et que l'Djâble te cobisse.	Que le bon Dieu te bénisse, et que le Diable t'estropie.	May the Good Lord bless you and the Devil cripple you.

Canadian French translations

Although there are considerable differences in pronunciation and lexicon, Canadian French (Québécois) and standard French are mutually understandable. This is partly due to the fact that most of the French citizens that have immigrated to Canada for centuries came from areas outside of Paris and, during the French Revolution, their dialect would eventually become the national language of France. Quebecois French is also partly based on the Royal French spoken by the King's Daughters (les filles du roi), women of marrying age who were sent to the colony of New France in the mid-seventeenth century, under the royal auspices of the Court of King Louis XIV, to correct the imbalance that existed then between the sexes. Some of these women were Parisian orphans; others were recruited from the areas of La Rochelle and Rouen.

Therefore, if your target audience is the French-speaking public of Canada, we recommend translating your message into Canadian French (Québécois). However, if your audience is the French-speaking public in general and your budget is limited, then standard French is a better choice. InterSol will assist you in the selection of the appropriate language version for the your intended the target audience, taking into account budgetary considerations.

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1 Consonant that begins like a stop (most often [t] or [d]) but ends with a fricative release, like the sounds of "ch" and "j" (transcribed [tS] and [dZ]) in English. NB: A fricative consonant is characterized by frictional passage of the expired breath through a narrowing at some point in the vocal tract. (Merriam Webster)

2 A gliding monosyllabic speech sound (as the vowel combination at the end of toy) that starts at or near the articulatory position for one vowel and moves to or toward the position of another. (Merriam Webster)

4Articulated with the tip of the tongue touching or near the teethridge. (Merriam Webster)

References consulted during the writing of this newsletter:

http://www.wikipedia.org/ (General information about Canada and Canadian French)
http://www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/sampa/home.htm (Phonetic transcription.)
http://www.clarenovascotia.com/en/tourism/culture/language/express_01.htm (Acadian Expressions)
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Quebecois-French (Acadians)
http://www.aaresoft.com/french/French71.htm (vocabulary)
http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/lo-ol/prov-terr/que-f_e.cfm (Use of French)
http://www.comptoirlitteraire.com/detailsauteur.aspx?aid=99 (explanation of expressions)
http://www.whitepinepictures.com/seeds/i/12/sidebar.html (Les filles du roi)