French As an Official Language

While French is spoken by a significant part of the population of about 60 countries, it is only recognized
as an official language by 29 countries. The countries that speak French as an official language are
Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Guinea, Haiti, Ivory
Coast, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Monaco, Niger, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Senegal,
Seychelles, Switzerland, Togo and Vanuatu.

European Countries

Aside from France, the European countries where French is widely spoken include Belgium,
Luxembourg, Monaco and Switzerland, all of which also recognize French as an official language. While
French is an official language in these countries, each of these countries, aside from France and Monaco,
also recognize other languages officially. For instance, Switzerland recognizes German, French, Italian
and Romansch all as official languages.

African Countries

France was a major player in the European efforts to colonize Africa and certainly left its mark in many
ways, including language. French is widely spoken, though it may not be recognized as the official
language, in these African countries: Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African
Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast,
Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Reunion,
Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, Togo and Tunisia. While French is widely spoken in these African countries,
native languages are still commonly spoken by most of the population, along with other languages such
as English and Dutch.

Countries in the Americas and Caribbean

The list of countries that speak French in the Americas and Caribbean include Canada, French Guiana,
Guadeloupe, Haiti and Martinique. French Guiana, Guadeloupe and Martinique all recognize French as
their official language, are formally governed by the Overseas Department of France and are considered
non-sovereign.
Countries in the Pacific

Three countries in the Pacific--French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Vanuatu--have a significant French-
speaking portion of their population. French Polynesia includes the popular tourist destination of Tahiti
and is considered an overseas territory of France, thus recognizing French as an official language. New
Caledonia is also an overseas territory of France with French as its official language, while Vanuatu is a
sovereign republic.

How Many People In The World Speak French?

The simple answer is “about 300 million,” but this obscures a more complicated profile
of the language. Within the 300 million are not only native speakers, but also partial
speakers and speakers of numerous French dialects and creoles. Through colonization
and diaspora, French is the sixth most widely spoken language in the world, following
Mandarin Chinese, English, Hindi, Spanish and Arabic. It’s an official language in
countries across five different continents and is also the second most studied language
in the world, after English: 120 million students are currently learning French. Atop the
220 million native speakers in the world, there are an estimated 72 million partial
speakers, and these numbers are increasing. Owing to population growth in Africa,
where approximately 50% of native French speakers live, the total number of French
speakers could rise to as much as 700 million by 2050, according to demographers.