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French language in Chandernagor and Pondicherry has a long and interesting history. Both of these cities were once part of French India, which was a collection of French colonial territories in India that existed from 1668 until 1954.

On the sides of river Ganga, about an hour drive from earstwhile capital of British India, Calcutta lies a small and quite neighborhood with smells of old French architecture and language, Chandernagore. Though the city is famed for its lights and one of the first French settlement in Asia still take pride of its connection with the Language of Molière. Chandernagor, which is located in West Bengal, was established as a French colony in 1673. The French East India Company set up a trading post there, and over time, the city became an important center for trade between France and India. The French language was used as the official language of the colony, and it was taught in schools and used in government and business transactions.

Today, Chandernagor is still home to many French buildings and monuments, and the French language continues to be spoken and taught there. The most important centres for French language teaching and learning still remained in the heritage building of Chandernagore College and Palais Dupleix, the museum and French institute. With its library having rich collection of old French authentic documents and books, the place is an secret door for French language lovers.

Pondicherry, which is located in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, was also established as a French colony in 1674. Like Chandernagor, the French language was used as the official language of the colony, and it was taught in schools and used in government and business transactions. Pondicherry was an important center for trade, and it was also a hub for French cultural activities in India. Today, Pondicherry is known for its French architecture, cuisine, and culture, and the French language is still spoken and taught there.

The city of Pondicherry takes pride in its Creole culture, where French mixes with the local Tamil language. The street boards, shops, cafes and bright yellow buildings can surely make you feel for a moment to be in Paris until you find the same name board in the Tamil language too. Till the recent past many important documents like birth certificates and house agreements were still made in the French language. The Pondicherry College remained an important meeting point of the French language diaspora of the city. The French language department of Pondicherry University established in 1987 is internationally renowned for its quality teaching, vast research scholars and spreading the French language among students of today’s era. Although the most number of citizens speak French, the old families of pondicherry still preserve their French language heritage.

In 1954, France relinquished its colonial hold over Chandernagor and Pondicherry, and the territories were incorporated into the newly independent India. However, the French influence on the language, culture, and architecture of these cities remains strong to this day. These cities are the silent spectators of rich and diverse history of French language on Indian subcontinent. The colonialism and after effects of it. Today the language is taught in almost all the metropolitan cities, second tier cities and universities across nation. Le Frehindi-Paris has always been promoting the French language and Indo French common heritage not only in India but also in France. These two cities are connections of lakhs of Indian Francophonies who might be millennials with their counterparts in France and it’s the youth of today who can conserve the language, monuments and sites for future generations.

For more details feel free to write to us at team@lefrehindi.com or call us at +919811237050.

Team Le Frehindi

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