page_title: African French
hierarchical_section_title: African French
context_page_description: African French is the generic name of the varieties of a French language spoken by an estimated 430 million people in Africa spread across 29 francophone countries. This includes those who speak French as a first or second language in these 31 francophone African countries, but it does not include French speakers living in non-francophone African countries. Africa is thus the continent with the most French speakers in the world. French arrived in Africa as a colonial language; these African French speakers are now a large part of the Francophonie.
  In Africa, French is often spoken alongside indigenous languages, but in a number of urban areas it has become a first language, such as in the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in the urban areas of Douala and Yaoundé in Cameroon or in Libreville, Gabon. In some countries it is a first language among some classes of the population, such as in Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritania and Algeria, where French is a first language among the upper classes, but only a second language among the general population.
  In each of the francophone African countries, French is spoken with local variations in pronunciation and vocabulary.
context_section_description: African French (French: français africain) is the generic name of the varieties of a French language spoken by an estimated 430 million people in Africa spread across 29 francophone countries. This includes those who speak French as a first or second language in these 31 francophone African countries (dark blue on the map), but it does not include French speakers living in non-francophone African countries. Africa is thus the continent with the most French speakers in the world. French arrived in Africa as a colonial language; these African French speakers are now a large part of the Francophonie.
  In Africa, French is often spoken alongside indigenous languages, but in a number of urban areas (in particular in Central Africa and in the ports located on the Gulf of Guinea) it has become a first language, such as in the region of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in the urban areas of Douala and Yaoundé in Cameroon or in Libreville, Gabon. In some countries it is a first language among some classes of the population, such as in Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritania and Algeria, where French is a first language among the upper classes (many people in the upper classes are simultaneous bilinguals in Arabic/French), but only a second language among the general population.
  In each of the francophone African countries, French is spoken with local variations in pronunciation and vocabulary.
caption: Francophone Africa. The countries coloured dark blue had a population of 430.5 million in 2019.[1] In 2050 their population is forecast to reach between 845 million[2] and 866 million.[1]
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