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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ม.ค. 2013
- The Alsace region is defined by two of Europe's dominant cultures - the French and the Germans. But the ability to speak German is no longer taken for granted among the people of the region.
Read more: www.dw.de/program/european-jou...
It is immensly sad that through globalisation and a complete lack of support from the French establishment, the Alsace dialect is virtually dead. I'm 65 and I can remember hearing Alsace dialect spoken quite commonly, even in Strassburg.
The irony is that German is widely taught in schools there now (Hochdeutsch), so that whilst the dialect has been killed by neglect, someone like me can get by anywhere using Hochdeutsch.
Globalism has nothing to do with this. There are two factors that are leading to the death of Alsatian.
1. French language policy which has never supported any minority language conservation. Compared to Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Friesland, Saami and countiess other EU countries, France has always pushed for French as THE national language. It's not just Alsatian that is doing poorly.
2. In linguistics, you'll find that there are precedents for a lingua franca becoming the main or only language of a region. Languages and dialects have always lived and died by these means. To a certain extent, this kind of change is inevitable. In Alsace, French is the lingua franca becoming dominant. That's what's extinguishing Alsatian. It's not the global lingua franca of English. And it's understandable that many Alsatians are okay with this, given how normal this is in language history.
That doesn't mean nothing should be done to conserve Alsatian. I personally think it should be conserved, but it's important to recognize that such an effort is likely to always have limited success. Realistically, it's a bit like conserving a great work of culture in a museum. It takes quite a bit of work and it costs resources.
Ireland has had limited success. Quebec has had quite a bit of success. Livonian, by contrast is now a dead language.
I am in the U.S. My great grandmother was born in the Alsace area in 1844. She spoke in German and wrote in French.
That's a result of the fact that she learnt her orthography at school and there of course French was imposed on the little Alsatians. So they were brainwashed little by little. Another big influence was military service. Usually you stick to the flag you fought for (Crimea, Mexico!), even if it was enforced by conscription.
@Maxim Kretsch
I remember you lol I'm brainwashed, je parle français, please HELP!!!!
Upcamehill my great great great great great grandfather was was from there and spoke French at the time
maxime, tu dois etre tellement frustré avec ton nom de famille si non-froschfresser^^
@@nightwish1000 Explique-moi en quoi je suis frustré ? Et qu'est-ce que mon nom de famille à avoir avec ça ?
Hmm, France is so strange, other countries encourage minority languages, like Sorbian/Danish etc in Germany, Germans in Denmark, Austrians in Italy among many others.
France is a State Nation. In the Constitution of the Vth Republic it says : "One and Indivisible" . France is a centralized state since Napoleon and will remain centralized.
Well, Sorbian languages are not really thriving in Germany, to be honest ...
Sudtirol (alto Adige) : Italian & german
Valle d'Aosta: Italian & French
Friuli Venezia Giulia: Italian & Slovene
@benvolio mozart no
@benvolio mozart Indesctructible which led a cultural desctruction. Now, the Brezhonegs and Occitans are reviving their culture
I have relatives dating back to the 1500's to Alsace. They came to Pennsylvania as there were Germans everywhere. I assume around this time Alsace was German.
Germany didn't exist in the 1500s...
No not as 1 unified country but all the little German states. All German speakers.
Diabolik771
They spoke Germanic dialects.
Germany existed. Only between 1807-1871 there was no German state.
Herzlich willkommen, Kamerad !
I am Brazilian son of a Portuguese father and mother daughter of Alsatians from the city of Erstein. In opposition to my Portuguese family, which has always been very proud of speaking Portuguese and of their Portuguese origin, my Alsatian family, despite speaking German, they seemed to me without an identity of their own..... their passports were French but they didn't speak French and due to the second war, they were ashamed of being German... From my point of view, during the German unification it was correct for the Germans to annex Alsace, due to its cultural and ethnic origin (whether Alsatians like it or not, they are Germanic). What should have happened at the end of the first war, was to have held a referendum in Alsace Lorraine and its population to have decided their own future (let's not forget that France tried twice to annex the Saarland but its population did not accept it) For me, the policy of the French government has always been to eliminate the Germanic culture of this region, obtaining great results, but it would be up to the local population itself, to maintain their culture, language and tradition proudly, as do the South Tyroleans, Catalans, Corsicans, etc. . But I understand, if today the Alsatians-Lorraines feel more French than Germans, it's a decision that shouldn't be criticized...
My family is Alsatian, but we consider ourselves German if somebody were to ask.
That's because native Alsatian are ethnic Germans and alsatian language is a german language. German speakers can understand alsatian but French speaker can not
I visited Alsace last year; culturally and mentally, this region is as German as you can get. Strasbourg has a lot more in common with cities like Stuttgart and Karlsruhe than it does with any French city. What really surprised me is how a lot of people in Alsace barely consider themselves French (except when the French men's football team plays).
Hey Joseph, thats because the Alsatians never chooses to be Prussian or German. Their heart was ever french, because the germans never treat them right during and after the wars. A french republic territory cannot speak german, or a foreign dialect, and the reason is very simple to understand. France is centrally administrated, and this was necessary much sooner to build a republic in the middle of kingdoms, because democracy and a republic were considered as terrorists.
You barely hear alsatian in strasbourg it's mostly parisian french especially in the youth.
It is not only Elsasser German that has suffered French policy “one state, one nation, one language”. All other languages in France (Lorraine francique, Flemish, Breton, Occitan, Basque, Catalan, Corsican, Arpitan) and French dialects (Picard, Normand, Gallo, etc…) are planned to disappear by lack of school learning, forbidding in public service, internal colonisation (we are in France, we don’t need to speak local language) and shame of speakers. Except that German is not going to die in Germany, Occitan will be a dead language soon.
Basque is also doing well, in Spain.
@@Rolando_Cueva is it? I've lost track of the data on this issue, but last I checked Basque was still on the cusp of being endangered.
I've often thought that some of the minority languages that people want to conserve in Europe would do well to borrow a couple ideas from history. Language protection rights in Quebec have been quite successful and offer a good model. But so too does the creation of "standardized" versions of languages - such as Hochdeutsch. Basque has too much of a dialect continuum for it's own long term good. If an institution of the Basque language we empowered to teach and spread a standardized version of Basque - and put it everywhere in public spaces - it would promote the longevity of the language.
Yes that might diminish the dialects in the long term, but if it's a choice between having a dialect continuum in the short term and keeping a truly unique language in the long term, i would certainly choose the latter.
Good riddance. It does no good to a country in the long term. Look at the whole Catalan drama in Spain, for example. The french are smart to quell it before it becomes a bigger problem.
@@ems7623 Spain's Constitution grants full respect to Spanish languages and nationalities. Basque protection at the south of the Basque Country (under the Spanish State) has been stablished since the death of Franco more than 4 decades ago. It is the official language (alongside Spanish) and the preferential one of the Basque parliament and government, school and University system, health care system and many others. The same happens in Basque areas in Autonomous Community of Navarre. Over the last decades more and more people have started to use and while being in the danger, the language is in better shape than 40 years ago. With Catalan happens the same, is the official and preferential language of the Autonomous Communities of Catalonia, Valencia (under the name of Valencian) and Balearic Islands. Similarly to Basque, while being neglected by the French State, in the Spanish State is a thriving language, with support (and many time problems too one has to admit) of all Institutions. With Galician, would happen more or less the same situation. The Asturian language, may become official when the next Asturian parliament gets elected in 2023, although it is not in asturians will to develop it as much as their Atlantic neighbors the Galicians.
The Palestinian scarf was ridiculous in the song , it's about about French, Alsacian and German.
it isnt exclusively palestinian, many other middle east people wear it like jordanians, iraqis, koweitis, israeli arabs, sinai egyptians...
and its associated with anti-semitism
@@LazarusWilhelm not more that Tyrolean hats.
My cousin is from the neighbouring German state of Palatinate & he goes sailing and camping at a small lake in Alsace: when I went camping with him I stayed at a "bed and breakfast" next door. The Alsatian family that lived there was learning to speak German again at school & his kids went to a school that taught German and he and his wife attended night school relearning German that all of their grandparents spoke but neither of them spoke since they were children and at that time German was forbidden at school. He said that in his region all the night classes for German were filled to capacity with parents learning or relearning German because of the large number of visitors (tourists) from Germany. He still couldn't speak much German so we spoke with my halting high school French.
Wrong to say Alsatians must speak French only and forget their German dialect just because they are part of France, that's the problem with French linguistic policy and the suppression of all regional languages including Basque, Breton, Flemish and Alsatian German. It is a form of fascism. Why shouldn't these people be allowed to speak their native/historical languages and still be French? Why is the French government so insecure about regional languages? It's like saying Welsh speakers must speak only English because they are part of Great Britain. It will be to the credit of France to allow regional languages and dialects like Occitan to flourish instead of killing them off. In Spain Catalan and Basque were banned by Franco but it only strengthened the identity of the Catalans and Basques. In France even ethnic Germans and Bretons have become ashamed of their origins and heritage and prefer to hide it through self-censorship. This is like modern day slavery in which you are forced to speak the language of your masters!
It isn't called fascism.
It is called ethnocide.
Maybe they should rejoin germany
Alsatian is NOT a German dialect. It's a Germanic language, just like Luxembourgish and Dutch. And yes, I want Alsace to be officially bilingual Alsatian/French.
Just FYI, Alsatian and German have never been outlawed in Alsace. On the other hand, French was outlawed in Alsace between 1871 and 1918. And I think France is doing much better than Britain when it comes to regional languages. There are more Breton-speakers in Brittany than Scottish Gaelic-speakers in Scotland. As for Ireland, less than 1% of the population speak Irish as a 1st language!!! You english-speakers should better mind your own business...
@Luqman Nazery
No one wants to be German here. Stop dreaming...
Spot on Maxime!
I grow up in Alsace I feel more alsaciens then French
French government didn’t care for Alsace or alsaciens
They tell us we are German not French…
And honestly I feel more German and Swiss then French
It’s not fair in Alsace we speak eat and culture it’s German
Not French
It’s unfair having a French passport
We Alsace should have Swiss or Germany passport..
We do all German street are in German
Our food, construction language all is German we ruled mostly by Germany Swiss
It’s only 10% French
French government should seeding the Alsace land to Germany
I see your point. Then, why most of young people speaks Standard French and not German or A
lsatian?
Why always oppose and divide people and cultures ? Come towards Basel and you'll meet quite a lot of Alsatians speaking the German dialect as well as French. I am French (but not Alsatian), have married a Brit, and we are also learning German. Multilingualism is such an asset in today's world. Schools around where we are are setting up more and more bilingual classes, children can take the "Abibac". That is the way forward :0). It is actually OK to be multilingual and multicultural, despite the past.
My ancestors were from Breizh, where some singers speak Gaelic language... from Elsass/Deutschland/Österreich, including Tyrol and Southern Tyrol: Bruneck/Südtirol... Now it's named Brunico/Alto Adige... In Tyrol speak the people Tirolisch... and i've got ancestors in Switzerland and Ashkénazis ancestors from the Rhein... and family in all these countries... My Elsass is Germany, exactly like the Elsass in Rheinland-Pfalz is now the old Elsass where people speak the typical language from their ancestors... In Switzerland gives it a lot of languages, and Schwyzerdütsch with German and french, too... I prefer German language to use, but i'm not against the multi-culti where i'm from... only i'm against the world now, with our headquarter and Co...
@@totointernational3493 what's really weird is how Südtirol was annexed by Italy after WWI (not given back after WWII oddly enough). It should in theory be given back to Austria (not Trentino of course, as that is primarily Italian). It really bugs me because it wouldn't make Italy itself be all that different (in fact maybe more streamlined), but it would be significant to Austria, who is already a very tiny nation home to millions of people.
I know it's not best to correct all the wrongs of the world, but a few are rather head scratching, especially considering the fact that both Südtirol und Trentino are autonomous regions already.
@Zachary Menking * I'm agree with you... Only for justice... However, to be honest, the same for a lot of lands... Like Reunion: we are so different, as "French" ... 974 is so different... And in fact, really it would be better so... It gives so much to do for Justice...
A similar situation is with us in Upper Silesia in Poland. These areas in the past were German and a large part of the population is more identified with Germany than with Poland. Some places have Polish-German names and it is often the subject of a scuffle between native people and descendants of Poles who came here only after the war. In my opinion, Europe should show the rest of the world that cultural differences should not be a hindrance to social relations (eg Catalonia, the Balkans, the Basque Country).
It is not quite the same, the people in Silesia, Pomerania and East Prussia were largely expelled. The people in Alsace were assimilated and for many years after WWII schools could not teach German.
Azula Baratheon they are not assimilated they still can speak their language
@@REaLAToMicZ They can speak and redevelop their language at home again. No prohibition on usage of language.
Considering what Germans did to the Poles it is only natural that Poles don't trust the Germans.
The Germans have learned nothing from history.
Silesia is Slavic land (Polish/Czech). Germans were there temporarily, so they are no native there, and they are not welcome.
Silesia was Slavic since 6. century. It was under Polish and Czech rule. Silesia was originally under Czechs (Bohemia, Great Moravia), then a part of Poland since Mieszko I and Bolesław Chrobry, and later in Bohemia again.
And Germans started coming as guests in 13. century. Later the place was incorporated into Austria and then into Prussia and many Slaves were germanized (and many Czechs in Czechia were also germinized).
Now most of Silesia is in Poland and smaller part in Czechia.
Remember than East Germany occupies Slavic land.
Germany is in the process of being annihilated from within and without. Germans used to control most of central Europe. Alsace was ALWAYS german. It was part of the Holy Roman Empire. Germans have lost in history. Very sad. It breaks my heart. 😔
Why ? Because so many families lost so much during the war.
Why ? Because they were beaten at school when the spoke the local german dialect.
I have meet a lot of Alsatians in Croatia. They were all able to speak German, but all spoke French to each other.
Alsacia is pretty much Germany .. ethnically speaking , language , architecture and way of life , but they don’t think of them selves as Germans
Because they have been indoctrinated to "feel" France.
I'm just a American of partial alsatian decent so my opinion probably does not matter but is it too much to ask either france or germany to stop warring over this region? My ancestors fled because constant fighting wars that cause destruction and famine in Elsass - Lorraine. That was many hundreds of years ago but since then other people from alsace have also fled and are now in Croatia, the Ukraine and other parts of Eastern Europe. I understand that it's essential Germanic but after several centuries it is now also French. Now regardless who the people really are there still people don't deserve there lives ripped apart over ethnic nationalism and greed. Maybe I'm asking too much but it's sad to see the same old conflicts being debated even after several centuries.
If you speak only one language - especially in continental Europe - you're severely disadvantaged. They definitely should double down, working on their German.
The French government could be doing its part, mandating German as an administrative language in the region, but so far, they haven't.
If a multilingual family raises their children monolingual, they are not only denying their children the inherent advantages given by their own diversely rich family/cultural heritage,
even worse, in order to “accomplish” that, they would have to deliberately establish artificially forced ways to communicate between family members.
It’s very insulting. Im not a German, but Strassburg to France!? Tf!?
The legacy of Louis XIV and the centralization of French power and culture in the Isle De France lives on in contemporary French cultural politics.
Minority language and dialects do NOT do well in La France Métropolitaine. It is hard to pass laws that would support bilingualism or the preservation of the Alsatian language/dialect.
To be fair there ARE some advantages to this - including a stronger, more integrated French culture (which IS a French social issue ). However, most of us in the Western world mourn the loss of the linguistic diversity. Alsatian, Occitan, Franco-Provencal, Basque and Breton are all dying.
I hope that the EU reinforces and strengthens it's minority language policy. Europe needs regional autonomous rights to bilingual education and commerce. The Quebec language laws should be considered a great model to imitate. It would be good for commerce, good for diversity and it would even satisfy many of the anxieties of the various nationalist movements throughout Europe.
@@TFSIChristmas Are you really unaware of the history of Alsace? The political status of Alsace was a major reason for conflict between France and Germany for a couple centuries and the EU's emphasis on freedom of movement and open borders is STILL motivated by the mutual desire to move beyond territorial conflicts such as Alsace.
Culturally, Alsace is absolutely "between" France ànd Germany - just as their language is. This is why bilingualism (or trilingualism, for those who consider Alsatian its own language, not a dialect) there is often considered politically important to maintain. It has symbolized a difficult, hard-won peace for some time.
Why are you trying to reignite that old conflict? No one in Alsace is trying to do that.
Alsacians, another victim of forced French centralism. Imho they should get partial autonomy like South Tirol in Italiy to preserve their seperate identity.
You mean Alto Adigio
Sei gegrüsst, du unsres Landes Zeichen
Elsass Fahne flatternd froh im Wind
Deine Farben, lieblich ohnen Gleichen
Leuchten stets, wo wir versammelt sind
People has the rights to choose what language to be spoken.
“has”? What language are you speaking?
Yes ! Democracy is dying by France...
It’s hilarious to read the words “rights“ and “choose“ from a Chinese...
Try also “freedom“ and “democracy“! 😂😂😂
@@neilsarfati3334 Ad hominem? Really?
There ARE pro-democracy people in China. How do you know that the OP isn't one of them?
@@trololologram4987 The OP struggles with English. Or perhaps has used Google's translation software.
Could you do any better in Mandarin?
My great great great great grandfather migrated from Alsace to the US in the 1830s. He listed French as his nationally and native language, but married the first Prussian woman he could find. I guess thats indicative of the region he came from
PROUD TO BE FROM ELSASS !!!
Avec un nom pareil ? mdr
T'es vraiment naïf... Tu te fais appeler "Gamer"... Si tu cherches la Vérité, tu nous fais marrer, avec ton nom Frenglish... C'est petit: on peut faire une croix "Gamer" sur ton nom... @@gillesetjohn7523
@@totointernational3493 C'est un pseudo, toi ça semble être un nom de famille
Jo, jo: bisch dolle... @@gillesetjohn7523 Awer des isch nix: du babelsch, du Schlawergosch...
@@totointernational3493 das isch em jetz gsait wore 🤣
Although WW2 does explain it to some extent, it is still surprising that French has "progressed" so rapidly in an area where only 10% of the population spoke it 100 years ago.
The French government suppressed German in Alsace-Lorriane. Germany lost the war and they kept quiet for all the injustices the winners of WWII did or kept doing, including chopping off the country, displacing millions of ethnic Germans, or suppressing their language. The world has always been terribly unfair. Imagine France was still doing their cruel business in North Africa, while playing victim of WWII.
German was literally FORCED out of the people while French was FORCED in the people by the French state.
France has a policy of enforcing the French language and culture on all ethnic groups in France. The Alsatians are ethnic Germans - whether they like it or not. Corsica and Nice are full of ethnic Italians and Perpignan is full of Catalans. All these groups have been forcibly denied of their heritage just to enforce the uniformity of the French language on every corner of France.
Whaaaat?Nice / Niça are ethnic Italians ? You should learn their anthem Niça la Bèla. Their are ethnic Occitans, just as people from the Valadas occitanas dal Piemont around Cuneo / Coni where Occitan is recognised as co-official by the Italian State, or in the Val d’Aran in Spain where Occitan is recognised as co-official by the Generalitat de Catalunya, contrarily to France where 99% of the Occitans are…
I am a German-Canadian living in Canada. Several years ago I was working in northern Quebec where I met a young lady from Alsace who had emigrated to Quebec and I assumed that she spoke German because her last name was German so I tried addressing her in German and was surprised when she answered me in French. She told me that although her parents and grandparents still spoke Alsatian-German at home all her friends there could only speak French and many no longer even understood any German. She pointed out to me that German was frowned upon after the war so most of the youth quit speaking it AND it was no longer being taught in the school until recently. I pointed out to her that Quebec was conquered by England in 1758 and until recently the English tried to make it very difficult for the Quebecers to continue to work in and speak their French. If the Quebecers could continue to work and speak in French why couldn't the Alsatians do the same in Alsace? We still have cities and towns throughout the rest of Canada especially in New Brunswick and northern Ontario which were settled by the French hundreds of years ago that still speak and study in French although they can usually also speak English so if they can do it why can't the people of Alsace. Germany has a small population of Franco-Germans living on the border and like in Canada they are guaranteed the ability to study and speak French. In Belgium the Germans there still speak German in the part that Germany lost after WW1. I have relatives that live across the border in the Pfalz who love to holiday at a small lake where they can sail in Alsace. The last time I was there I stayed at an Alsatian Bed and Breakfast there and the landlord and his family were Alsatian/Germans who all were studying German (France has to teach German where numbers warrant according to the EEC) and relearning to speak their dialect which they too had lost even though his parents still spoke the dialect. My dad was an East Prussian and my mom from the Ruhr so we only learned and spoke Hoch Deutsch and I had a heck of a time understanding the dialect.
I come from this region. There are a lot of bilingual schools in this region (50 % in French, 50 % in German). Therefore, saying that the french government tries to ban German from this region is a pure lie...
Many young people (like me) speak french, german and english. The dialect is still spoken but since every kid has to learn french, german and english, they are already quite busy. English in Europe is the real reason why Alsacien is dying, not the french government. Of course, a english tv show would never admit that...
Why Irish tend not to speak Irish gaelic very well anymore ? Same for Welsh or Scottish gaelic. Yet, Irish Gaelic is an official language of Ireland and young Irish learn it at school. Globalization is the main reason of the collapse of the dialects (or not widely spoken languages) because these languages appear as (almost) useless. Today, the children in Alsace have to learn English, German and French. Asking them to learn Alsacien in addition to these three languages is too much.
Moreover, the situation in France at that time can be easily compared with the situation in Louisiana when the US government punished the children who spoke French at school. So the french government is clearly not the only one, who didn't pay too much attention at the regional cultures in the past. The French government and the US government did that to unify their country. Today, the situation has changed and the bilingual schools French/German help to preserve our French/German biculture in Alsace like "Codofil" helps to preserve the french heritage of Louisiana.
Have a nice day.
The film says that the French government banned German in the past, not today.
Its a german tv show in english actually
@@lucr4199
_The Breton in Brittany and Dutch language in Nord pas de calais?_
Are you alsacien
Anyone can help identify that illustration book Father reads to the daughter one? The one with many People at 3:39? Appreciated?
I believe it is either "My Alsace" or "My Village" by Hansi who was a turn of the century Alsatian activist.
Uncle Hansi series, you can find on ebay
Alsace is the best of both worlds. It is like a mythical germany, from the faitytales... On the German side of the border, you have the industrial Ruhr and the overly modernist freiburg. You cross the border into Alsace and you find hundreds of beautiful traditional german style villages tucked withing the vines of a sprawling wine country. Cities like Strasbourg and Colmar are absolutly beautiful. German is a great culture, but it has been ravished by the war and poorly rebuilt. Alsace is intact, ans the parts that aren't are perfectly rebuilt. All that thanks to France. Alsace is of German heritage, but is FRENCH
You know you can find the traditional German style towns and stuff in other parts of Germany quite easily?
@@Liktor67, but not in this density and well preseved state as in the Alsace.
Nice sight of this
I'm from Basel, close to lovely Colmar, but i know many small beautiful cities in Germany.
Visit Saxony, Harz Region and the Baltic Coast. They are well renovated, now.
And there is no overtourism like Straßburg and Colmar. Some german Cities are like a fairytale.
Curious how adamant the French are about protecting the diversity of languages when French is not dominant. When French can be imposed, diversity isn't so important.
We can say the same about the English... What's the percentage of Scottish-Gaelic-speakers in Scotland? What about the Irish-speakers in Ireland? The Cornish-speakers in Cornwall?
Humhum Bavarians dialect cough cough .
@Maxime Schmitt. I'm not sure what your hang up is about England re other comments but contrary to your sloppy historical assumptions, the English and more latterly the British have never seen the need to oppress the use of other languages. Neither Scottish nor Irish Gaelic, even under the Penal Laws, have been banned and the people of Quebec were not prevented from speaking French. Language evolves and can fall out of use eg Latin and Cornish.English is the language of the world and you could argue, the culture of the world, so unlike the French the English are comfortable with the use of other languages. We don't need to try that hard eg Welsh is a compulsory subject in Welsh schools even though only a minority of Welsh people still speak the language.
@@maximeschmitt2094 Ireland too !
Italy has dozens if not hundreds of regional languages and their country works. Why can't the french government take an example on this?
Sounds like in the English speaking parts of Canada where we are finding that we don't have enough French teachers to teach children French! If you want a job teaching in Canada, become a French teacher and earn over $100,000 per annum! In SW Ontario some schools can no longer teach French due to the lack of French teachers! Thankfully French is still spoken in Canada so that hasn't happened yet in Quebec, Acadian New Brunswick and several places in northern Ontario (in the 1970s there used to be a small town of St.Paul's Alberta where French was still spoken and in the little town of Tilbury in southern Ontario near Windsor.) despite being conquered by the English in 1756!
My grandfather from Alsace once told me that my grandmother‘s father was forced to join the Wehrmacht but returned as a french soldier because he was taken prisoner by french troops and given the choice to join the french army which he did.
French minister of culture.
Surname Schlung.
Hm
I went to the region last summer, did some wine tasting and the lady that ran the winery spoke Deutsch, French, and English. I'd say the region as a whole has been embracing the multiculturalism as of late
Amazing piece of information. 🇫🇷🏡💙
I know French people hate to talk about competition in a market, but will Alsace become more competitive in the EU if its people are fluent in both German and French?
After all, WWII has been over for decades, and people won't have to worry about it becoming the epicenter of a political dispute anymore.
I am about half British, and half German with 1% Basque. I would love to learn this dialect. My grandmother on my father's side's last name is Yount. She loved all foods German, and after researching the history of Alsace, it makes sense.
Elsaß-Lothringen ist Deutschland.
you better be a native to say such things
All Germany is Poland and France
Deutschland gibt es nur weil Napoleon es wollte.
Das Elsass gab es schon davor, und es war schon ein Teil von Gallien und dann vom römischen Gallien.
Auch wenn man eine Form des Alemannischen dialects spricht, eigentlich eine Stammessprache, gibt es einen Yidischen Einfluss, und heute einen französischen Einfluss. Durch die Kriege, hat sich Elsässisch von seinen Wurzeln entfernt. Mit Deutschland und Hochdeutsch hat das nichts zu tun. Frankreich rückt im Grunde näher an die Grenze, und somit die Republik deren Baustein die französische Sprache ist. Dialekte gibt es in der französischen Sprache nicht, nur Mundarten und Akzente. Dialekte haben immer ihre Wurzeln in einer Fremdsprache oder in einer Stammessprache (korsisch, baskisch, bretonisch, Elsässisch).
Elsass-Lothringen gibt es schon zweimal nicht, a) weil in gesamt Lothringen nicht Alemannisch gesprochen wird, b) weil Mosel nur 1/3 von Lothringen darstellt. Dieser Sprachmissbrauch gibt es auch in Frankreich, da früher in Paris die Ostgebiete weit entfernt waren, und Unkenntnis genauso verbreitet war.
Also non, Alsace-Lorraine oder Alsace-Moselle ist nicht Deutschland
@@jareinful 😂😂😂
Opps,...I forgot that Basque is spoken in Biarittz and thus one can learn to speak that also but I beleive that basque is super difficult if you're not of a basque language background!The basque language is not even of indo-european and thus that makes it even more difficult to learn etc.
The Basque people has German ancestors, so while the Swastika...
We can see a bit the difference between the reporter insisting on "German" or "Alsatian German" while many Alsatians just say "Alsatian" (except for bilingual schools, where they teach standard), since it's different enough from standard German to be considered apart, though they're still relatively close
It's a dialect.
I think the Swiss have the best idea 4 language spoken and have a direct democracy and each language has its own culture and so should the United States, and instead of 50 states it should be 50 countries.
50 countries? come on now.. I can fly from North Carolina to Los Angeles tomorrow if I feel like it - no need for a passport.. its' fine as-is but damn if my fellow Americans don't try their hardest to ruin a good thing going each and every day
Hawaii should be independent surely and
Yeah, if you break the 50 states become 50 countries, how long the immigration line in the airports will be? With 50 states, the people who just arrived in US from other countries already being sucked up by the immigration line
The Swiss can handle three languages and look at their economy. The concept of European nations is outdated.
That’s nonsense. Most swiss only speak one language, the german and french speaking parts don’t have much contact with each other
Aaaaah la choucroute!!! How I miss it!!
This was the story of my family. My paternal grandfather served in the french army until they lost WWII and he got drafted by the wehrmacht. But he was smart and decided to desert rather than die in russia. And my dad went to french public schools which forbid the use of Alsacian so he had to learn french just to go to school.
Even today native elsassich speakers will use french when talking about money and business but will use elsassich when talking about domestic matters.
Alsace and Lorraine. This is different from Canada, an artificial country where Anglo-Saxons and French colonized the country and created English-speaking and French-speaking regions without permission.
It is the history of European peoples from ancient times.
A' mon avis l'habilité de parler Allemand pourrait etre un "atout" vincent pour les jeunes et moins jeunes abitants d'Alsace, si il n'existat pas une sorte de "fracesitation forcée" qui a fait deparir quasi totelement cette habilité
Exactement ! Parler deux langues est toujours bénéfique, surtout si on grandisse bilingue . Vu que la France et l'Allemagne sont voisines et amies, c'est encore mieux !
Excusez mon francais, j'étais un élève horrible . 🙈
As an American with Alsacian ancestors, it saddens me that I speak neither French nor German.
You could always learn
I'm learning about my family history. I've discovered my father's family is Alsatian. I'm confused, they're French and proud yet proud of their German background too. Are they just as French as those from Brittany, Occitania, or Normandy?
Alsace originally was a German region and a center of German learnedness, ingenuity and culture in the 15th and 16th century. Despite French claims in this comment section to the contrary, the Alsatians of that time felt German and called themselves Germans and were subjects of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.
France annexed this region in 1648 (Strasbourg only in 1681). After that, the Alsatians were French subjects but still had a strong German ethnic and cultural identity. It was only after the French Revolution that the Jacobins wanted to wipe out all ethnic and cultural differences within France and establish a sole French language and a sole French culture (which means: Parisian language and culture).
After the revolution, the Alsatians lost their German identity. When Germany retook the region in 1871, most Alsatians felt French and wanted to remain part of France. But in the course of the following decades, their German identity was reinstated so that in 1918 when the French took it again, most Alsatians felt German and wanted to remain with Germany.
The horrible events of WWII when Germany took and lost the region again, the German identity was completely wiped out. Nowadays, most Alsatians only regard themselves as Frenchmen. Some of them even deny their German roots, such as Maxime Schmitt here, who differentiates between "Germanic" and "German" which is an ahistoric differenciation because, as mentioned above and as proven by historic records, the Alsatians of yore simply called themselves and felt German.
@benvolio mozart I am aware of that, but I was obviously speaking about the pre-revolutionary era.
Es sollte doch für die großen Europäer in Paris kein Problem sein in Elsass-Lothringen Deutsch als zweite Amtssprache wieder zu etablieren. In Luxemburg, Belgien oder der Schweiz geht es ja auch problemlos.
I've read all the comments. I am open minded but I am still non the wiser what is the real situation. I think I'll leave it at that. There are as many interpretations as people. Shame really.
You are right. Most of people do not know the basics of the French and German history and the common Alsatian and Moselan (part of Lorraine) tragedy of many wars. It is not only a question of languages. The history of Alsace and Lorraine is much older than WWI and WWII, and before Germany began to exist.
i Sproch noch Elsässisch düetsch 😼🎃🔥
@mitsuki thx :3
Whats that about the Arab scarf? That has nothing to do with Alsace.
@Kim Boom Joong Yep.......I bet there are a lot of Bicots in Strasbourg!!!...
Islam is the future of Europe so yes its part of Alsace Lorain culture...
Europe will be blacked
Why are there so many German-looking buildings in the very French Elsaß-Lothringen? 🤔
Guys I’m an American and I so desperately trying to understand Alsace-Lorraine problem. I truly don’t
Hey Kris, well explained it is simple to understand. It is just a part of the rich history of central Europe and the result of many wars. The region has changed 5 times the nationality between 1870 and 1945 and more if you consider the different periods since the middle age and before Germany exists. The history of Alsace and Moselle (just a small part of Lorraine) is built by tragedies and wars, and both countries, France and Germany participated to the tragedies, but since 1870 France already was a republic, and Germany an Empire or a dictatorship, not the best neighborhood for freedom. Furthermore, France and Germany already being economic competitors, and Alsace was considered as a rich industrial region.
Depending on the duration it belonged to France or Germany, the long time time practiced alemannic dialect has changed, has been mixed with french, and has been separated from local german roots by the french education. Nationalisms are subsisting on both sides, even the UE is made for partnerships of similar democracies.
I'm learning Deutch so as to navigate Europe one day .
That'd so sad! My grandfather barely escaped, then... his father emmigrated during WW1, or just after! Edit: they spoke German.
It's wonderful The French don't want Germans in Alsace.
@@patriciabrenner9216 They shouldn't want the buildings too then, burn them together with the castles and strip Allsace the last german things they possesse.
Erase the history too. Sarcasm ends
Luckily there will be no french in France either soon.
Irony about this video is that they dub the people being interviewed
Wish I could hear them speaking more clearly
Ah well
You can watch the German version here:
th-cam.com/video/a49OFbUcFlo/w-d-xo.html
/mw
My grandma Bernard from these People. Same cousins look a bit Latin. Beautiful brown eyes and brunettes.
Being brunette is OK, being blond is racist
People in Europe don't want to learn German.
Obviously English is learned as the lingua franca.
The second most popular language is French even though much more people in Europe speak German as a first language.
The reason: Germans.
Alsatian is mainly spoken n the country side and perhaps smaller towns. Second generation townies loose it. Not sure that proper german is actually spoken by most people although the may be able to manage it to some degree plus they also have german tv. Mass immigration is also not going to adopt and adapt.
Strange because almost all Alsatians I know do not like Germans. What is even stranger is that the other French (therefore, non-Alsatian) almost always appreciate the Germans and never hate them. (despite the story ..)
An important thing to know: to name a close cousin in France (for example: the son of your uncle), the usual term is "cousin germain"
In French language "Germain" means ----> "German" .... even if no one is German lol
Even for genetics the DNA of the French or Germans are called "French and German";)
France + Germany = the heart of Europe whose center is Alsace and Strasbourg is better than Brussels to be the capital of the EU because the EU could not exist without Germany or France ....
Lies
'Germain' does not mean German. It's inherited from the Latin word 'germen' which means seed/origin. The Spanish word for brother, 'hermano', and the English verb 'germinate' has the same source.
nein nein nein alter ich benutzte google tranlate nicht, dass ist aber ein Versprechen.aber wenn du mir nicht glauben willst kann ich nichts tun.
ES LEBE D'ELSASS... ^=^ STOLZ ELSÄSSER ZU SEIN...
"The Alsace region is defined by two of Europe's dominant cultures - the French and the Germans."
Well, I guess one of them is getting more dominant. :D
Which one?
Nick T Sadly, the French...
@@cubanoloquito fortunately, the French
@@cubanoloquito That’s weird cause I would argue, in Europe, that German culture is getting more dominant
ES LEBE #WEISSENBURG
As a "young" alsatian speaker, i can tell you this language is dying. Young people always speak french, except some of them who speak alsatian with their parents / grandparents (like me). It is also not taught at school, so basically we learn from our family.
Like the guy in this video, I started to dislike german too, even if i had good marks at school. But this is personal. For me it's a complicated language so instead i chose to learn English because i like it more and it's more useful.
I wonder what Alsatian German means... Maybe German with some French words? --- (gilberto lehrer from brazil)
gil lehrer no, not at all. It’s an allemanic dialect thus a form of high German.
Other allemanic dialects are spoken in Switzerland and Baden-Württemberg.
Those dialects are as far away from standard German as Dutch and have a different grammar and a lot of proper words.
Elsàsserditsch just like the word schwyzerdütsch 😉
A language quite well apart from the standard hochdeutsch
It has a few words up and there with french roots, just like english has
Elsässisch isch alemannisch. Alemannisch is(t) meine Lingua Franca.
I Don' t speak french, so ist im Elsass, mein alemannisch very helpful.
Gruß/ Greetings aus Baden/ Allemagne. Salute!!!
And why does somebody have to speak german?
The alsatian language is dead today, all the people I met said they spoke french and even english lol
Because they got indoctrinated by French government. One thing they couldn't change at all is their surnames
Ja. Alle sind interessiert an Spanisch. Ein Deutschsprachiger ist schwierig in den USA zu finden.
ghenulo Es gibt nicht viele Amerikaner die eine andere Sprache beherrschen, und Deutsch ist doch viel zu schwer. Unfortunately, German is not very popular in American schools and colleges.
Ich bin Amerikaner und hab 5 Jahre Deutsch gelernt. Natürlich Hochdeutsch, aber ich finde die viele verschiedene Dialekten sehr interessant!
TEAM #WEISSENBURG
That belongs to Germany
the 1871 German annexation of Alsace-Lorraine
Yeah just try to take it, you will see what happen. We have 300 nukes avaible in stock. Each one can destroy area bigger than Bavaria. We just have to press the button.
Amazigh Blue Azul - Anti Mafia - Anti ANPD damn a nuke that can destoy the entirety of Bavaria, is it an antimatter bomb or something lmao
@@freewal Germany is an advanced country, they can produce nuclear weapons in secrecy. (I understand Alsace as a French region btw, that kind of annexation attempt would be really barbarian)
@@scepticsquirrel They can on paper, but in reality if an entity or a state tries to enrich uranium, it will be detected very fast and actions will be taken. It's impossible to secretly have a military nuclear program. North Korea and Iran tried, but they were caught. If they try anything, they will be nuked.
French Government has been fair and respectful of their citizens in Alsace-Lorraine when teaching German to schoolchildren.
Please what??? Look at Belgium, Germany or Italy.
French is the only accepted national language, france is everything else, but excepting other languages, Corsican is almost dead too!!!
Stop saying "alsacian german" its named "alsacian". Both are germanic languages, but none comes from the other. Alsacians must learn 5 years in school to speak german!
Alsatian is High German dialect lol. You can discard it when it was a Low German or Platdüütsk dialect, but in reality it is a High German dialect
@@__Man__ High German apeard in the year 1440, more later than Alsatian , (first mention 1369) but was used by "Triboques" civilisation, at the time of the Roman Empire!!!...
So Alsatian is not comming from high German, but is maybe part of his late appearance...
If it is possible would alsatians vote for reunification with german
NEVER!
@@thierry-yonathanmeyer5976 1st question:Are you Alsatian German? 2nd question ;Why? Germany's economy politics and life standars are better than France and you are a german speaker and German ethnicity
@@efe9446 I'm alsatian
Alsatian people will never ever forget nor forgive what was endured during ww2
And while alsatian dialects are part of the many spoken germanics languages (from German to... English), they are quite far away from the standard hochdeutsch
Alsatian are definitely French at heart, economy is not all and life standard is not that bad in France
To be honest if we could choose, we rather be an independent nation, because we hate Germany for what they did to us and are, sometime, angry with France because they abandoned us twice
Wanna know something else? 🙂
@@efe9446 I'm from Alsace as well and I don't know a single person here who would like to be German. We want more autonomy but we feel very FRENCH.
As for the standard of living being "better" in Germany, that's not really true.
@@thierry-yonathanmeyer5976 Excellent answer 👍
Alsace is German land under French occupation.
/dev/RerunCipher alsace lorraine was german since medival ages. But french got the advantage and invades area in 1690s german montherland turned back in 1871 after 200 years of occupation
@@efe9446 You really need to get your facts right.
Maxime Schmitt dude it was land of Holy Roman Empire.
Maxime Schmitt you are an assimilated alsatian german. They used french propoganda on you. If you look to maps in 19th century Alsace’s populations 90percent was german
It is a pretty good overview of the current situation in Alsace.
But, if I may, I found disturbing hearing "Alsatian German" during the whole report.
My family and I are from Alsace, we still live there and I can assure you that no one here talks about the "Alsatian German" when we mention our dialect. We just say "Alsatian", which represents an entire culture.
Sorry to disturb you Juliette but I can't keep my curiosity back. I am from Turkey, and I received Hochdeutsch (Standard German) classes for three years. Could you describe a little how different Alsatian is than Standart German, if you also know the latter?
Oğuz Yurtçu Heyy! I am a German currently learning the Alsatian dialect/language, basically, Alsatian is different and similar in these ways:
- Alsatian is an Alemannic dialect of German, and the dialect itself is divided into 8 smaller dialect areas, where some words change depending on the region in Alsace (I am learning the Strasbourg Dialect).
- Alsatian has a few French loanwords, I think it's no mystery why. (Sàlü for Hello, Orwar for Goodbye, Merci for Thanks). Despite of a few loan words though, it's clearly a dialect and generally intelligible to Germans, but still quite different.
- Alsatian grammar is virtually the same as the German grammar, but Alsatian uses slightly different articles! (De for Der, D' for Die and S' for Das). Alsatian also pronounces all the R's in it's words, like in "garn" (Gern in german), of course with the same R sound as in German and French. :)
I hope I could help you :D
Greetings from Berlin 👍🏻🇩🇪❤️🇹🇷
@@cubanoloquito Thank you 😀👍
Oğuz Yurtçu No Problem :D
American Imperialism? The sun never sets on the British Empire and I don't know what the French view of their empire was and Germany needed "breathing space." We Americans took the easy way out. We conquered the World thru its mind. Everyone wants to be American and eat our food and see our movies and listen to our music etc. WE WIN.
The sun never sets on the British Empire because God doesn't trust the English in the dark.
@@DrMerle-gw4wj That's a good one lol. I'ma use that myself.😂😂
ES LEBE DIE DEUTSCHE NATION
Talk about an identity crisis. French or German? Following WW2 you "hitch your wagon" to the eternally ashamed, Germany, or the eternally humiliated, France.
@Anonyme ok
napoleon used to beat the german states like bad step children and face it you got destroyed in 2 world wars lol
@@camm8642 🤡🤡🤡
@@gamezzzrevolution7157 all you loser
Der Kommentarbereich hier ist pures Entertainment. Ich widme mich jetzt den wichtigen Dingen im Leben und geh erst mal kacken. Viel Spaß noch Leutz
"wichtigen dingen" wie was? Arbeit, Hobbies, Haustiere? vergängliche materialistische kacke.
@@egegeggegeeg4789 Jup. Ist mir tatsächlich alles wichtiger als gezeichnete Linien auf einem Blatt Papier, die dir sagen, wo du deine Steuern zu zahlen hast. Aber jeder hat da ja so seine eigenen Prioritäten. Wenn dir die Alsace-Lorraine Frage wichtiger ist als Freunde, Freude und Lebenslust in deiner kurzen Zeitspanne auf diesem Planeten, dann sei dir das vergönnt. Mir ist das so egal wie ne Harzkiepe
@@minchen_2265 "freunde, freude und lebenslust" wer sagt, dass das nicht möglich ist? geht beides zusammmen. "gezeichnete lininien auf einem blatt papier...." das konzept von grenzen existiert seitdem es menschen gibt und sich stämme gegenseitig die fresse eingeschlagen haben. die entstehung und die entwicklung der deutschen kultur und identität mit "steuern zahlen" gleichzusetzen, bestätigt mein vorher genannte anschuldigung: materialistische, vergängliche, kacke. dieses individuelle denken ist nicht nur materialistisch und selbstsüchtig, sondern auch sehr langweilig bzw. eintönig. diese identität, die du mit "gezeichnete Linien" gleichsetzt, ist ein produkt von hunderten von jahren. nach deiner logik müsste es keine länder, völker geben. Leider muss ich dich enttäuschen: es bildeten sich unterschiedliche Identitäten.
da die Konsumgesellschaft derzeit die deutsche Kultur ersetzt, erkennst du meinen punkt noch nicht.
I certainly did not expect the usual suspects to be this vocal about their meaningless ancestry here in the comments.
Americans...
well most ethnically french people no longer live in France. that's what happens when you leave your country and colonize a new one.
Junge Junge..
@Alex Garcia. France will always big ridiculed for its capitulation during WW2 but more significantly France will be vilified for its shameful collaboration. Always second to Britain both culturally and historically.
France being second to Britain culturally and historically is an opinion of yours, not a fact. Let's stay with facts as this is not a debate of culture, but a discussion of history.
French culture is highly revered around the world, it is not second to Britain, they are 2 different cultures.
France and Britain should be ridiculed for starting WW2. Without them declaring war on Germany there would not have been a WW2.
@@JUAN_OLIVIER Is that right? So Germany invading Czechoslovakia, Poland, Belgium, Holland etc... had nothing to do with it? Half wit.
@@Kaiserbill99 ok
It’s FRANCE. They should be speaking FRENCH. I don’t blame Alsatians for hating Germany. Germany has much to be hated for.
Uh...german is too damn hard to learn!!!French is much easier..I mean it takes years and years of practice to speak good correct german and one still can never reach the level of a near native speaker etc.I will always be pro-francophone even though my german(schwabian/baden-wutemburg)last name states otherwise!I have alsatian roots also and I'm proud of that!!!...
It maybe hard to you but not to other people
I have a prejudice towards the language and always will!!!Dutch which has many similarities to German is much easier...I like to call it "German"without the difficult gramar ha!ha!ha!ha!ha!I'll let the germans speak to me in english because a good number of them can!!!...
I find German isn't all that hard. For me the nasalised vowels and silent consonants of French to be more confusing. However that's also because my native language is English and as such is more related to German than French.
English and German both belong to the Germanic family of languages but Great Britain, and therefore the English language, was deeply francized during the Middle Ages. This was a result of the conquest of England by William the Conqueror from Normandy in 1066, a king who spoke exclusively French and imposed the French language in England. Old English became the language of the poor population and French the language of the court and wealthy population. It is said that during this period England spoke more French than France itself. Today, it is estimated that 70% to 72% of the English language comes from French or Latin.
German isn't hard at all, here even small children speak it.
I could understand having an easy fluent grasp of italian(if I were living in Nice or Monton)....spanish or catalan(if I were living in Toulouse,Biarittz,Perpignan)....Corsican(dialect of italian)...thus all of latin origen and thus much,much easier than german!!!Umm,up north in places such as Lille or Pas de Calais,I could see one having an easy fluency with flemmish/dutch which in my opinion..has a much easier grammar than german!Leave the alsatians alone...don't pressure them to learn a nearly impossible language such as german and let the germans across the rhine learn fluent french and thus problem solved!!!...
For me German is much easier than French. It totally depends on where you're from. But what you suggest is stupid: Don't pressure them to learn German and force Germans on the other side of the river to learn French. Like the French haven't already forced their language to enough peoples. Why wouldn't the Alsatians learn German. Their dialect is German (Oberdeutsch). It's of course (like the most German dialects) really different from the standardised form, but if their mother tongue is Alsatian, than it's easier for them to learn German than French. It's aside of that also useful to know another language.
"don't pressure them to learn a nearly impossible language such as german..."
LOL. You must be joking. Very funny satire.
hanan, thx, for letting us solve this problem ourselves. it's natural that those with germanic culture rather tend to learn the nearest standard language.
@@JRRLewis German is hard and nearly impossible to learn!!!
Bilingualism via Esperanto is the fair solution. Other solutions are most likely to lead to repeated conflict. History has repeated itself so many times....but average people have a block to how MANY languages have been "so called world languages". Few people know that GERMAN was also the language of culture (Bach, Beethhoven, Mozart, Shubert) and science (Marx, Einstein, Freud). It was taught widely in the United States, now daddy to world English. Esperantists vastly support trilingualism.
Apparently, Alsace is the land of people with red noses
This documentary is not consistent. Very poor. Made by Americans who don't understand anything about European History.
Europe doesn't have any history, well only if you consider stealing poor countries history then yes
a pro-german piece of journalism. all those interviewed bear german surnames. and a close-up of sauerkraut and wuerst. well done.
meanwhile in china, uyghurs still speak and write in uyghur and get education in their mother tongue. so do tibetans, ethnic koreans and a considerable numbers of ethnic mongolians. they have tv stations and radio stations in their own languages. this is a true sense of diversity and respect that the europeans, brainwashed by narrow-minded nationalism and separatism at the same time, need to learn from the chinese with their imperial past and communist ideals, both being much more tolerant of minorities than nationalism and capitalism when you think about it.
Uyghur turks are now assimilating by china
I don’t blame them as to why they stopped speaking German. Besides German is the ugliest sounding language in the world.
🤡
French is also
Alsacians are french, so they have to speak french.
je te l'ai déjà dis : va chier !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ledovalsacien Petit, le fait que tu n'aimes pas mes idées ne t'autorise pas à me parler de cette façon, d'autant que j'ai trente ans de plus que toi. Tu fais peut-être une crise d'identité, mais la courtoisie et la politesse doivent toujours rester de mise entre gens ayant des idées opposées. Je te croyais bien élevé, je vois que je me suis trompé. En parlant ainsi et en te montrant intolérant face à mon opinion, tu fais honte à l'Alsace et aux Alsaciens. Je représente bien mieux notre région et j'en suis un bien meilleur ambassadeur que les gens comme toi.
right but also German! The People of Alsace Speaking for many generations only German. So what is your problem?
Donauschwabe I have no problem, I just say Alsacian people are french and so they have to speak french, that's all. Nous sommes Français, monsieur !
I am alsacian from Strasbourg and l am french. Absolutely not german. What you say is nonsense.
Once the people of Alsace spoke german, but it's over. The past is the past and now we live in the 21st century.
Then Québécois are Canadian and subjects of the British Crown. By your reasoning, they should speak the language of their conquerors. The only reason the French aren't speaking German is the WASPs.
The world should simply learn to speak English. It is the lingua franca.
The Germanic language which is English.
The world should simply speak their own languages.