plexus
18-07-03, 17:14
French government bans use of word 'email'
The French government has banned the use of the word 'email' in all its ministries, documents, publications and websites.
In the latest step to stem an incursion of English words into the French language, the Culture Ministry says the term should be replaced with 'courriel'.
The ministry's General Commission on Terminology and Neology insists internet surfers in France already use the phrase courrier electronique (electronic mail) instead of email.
The commission ruled: "Evocative, with a very French sound, the word courriel is broadly used in the press and competes advantageously with the borrowed mail in English."
The commission has links to the Academie Francaise, the prestigious institution that has been one of the top opponents of allowing English terms to seep into French.
Some internet industry experts say the decision is artificial and doesn't reflect reality.
Marie-Christine Levet, president of French internet service provider Club Internet, said: "The word courriel is not at all actively used. Email has sunk in to our values."
She said Club Internet wasn't changing the words it uses, adding: "Protecting the language is normal, but email's so assimilated now that no one thinks of it as American. Courriel would just be a new word to launch."
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gekke fransozen :lekpuh:
The French government has banned the use of the word 'email' in all its ministries, documents, publications and websites.
In the latest step to stem an incursion of English words into the French language, the Culture Ministry says the term should be replaced with 'courriel'.
The ministry's General Commission on Terminology and Neology insists internet surfers in France already use the phrase courrier electronique (electronic mail) instead of email.
The commission ruled: "Evocative, with a very French sound, the word courriel is broadly used in the press and competes advantageously with the borrowed mail in English."
The commission has links to the Academie Francaise, the prestigious institution that has been one of the top opponents of allowing English terms to seep into French.
Some internet industry experts say the decision is artificial and doesn't reflect reality.
Marie-Christine Levet, president of French internet service provider Club Internet, said: "The word courriel is not at all actively used. Email has sunk in to our values."
She said Club Internet wasn't changing the words it uses, adding: "Protecting the language is normal, but email's so assimilated now that no one thinks of it as American. Courriel would just be a new word to launch."
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gekke fransozen :lekpuh: