French is as an official language in 30 countries and spoken by significant populations in over 50. A Romance language (descended from Latin), you will find native speakers of French spanning five continents. Most of these countries are part of the wider-ranging La Francophonie, an international organisation of French-speaking nations and governments; it comprises 55 member states, two associates as well as 13 observers. Napoleon would be proud.

Below you'll find two lists: the first is of nations where French is listed as an official language, the second where it is spoken by a significant percentage of the population. Do you know your countries en français?

French-speaking Countries