{"id":9037,"date":"2020-10-20T08:04:44","date_gmt":"2020-10-20T15:04:44","guid":{"rendered":"https://www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/translator/blog\/?p=9037"},"modified":"2020-10-20T17:13:44","modified_gmt":"2020-10-21T00:13:44","slug":"cest-tiguidou-ca-translator-adds-canadian-french","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https://www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/translator/blog\/2020\/10\/20\/cest-tiguidou-ca-translator-adds-canadian-french\/","title":{"rendered":"C\u2019est tiguidou \u00e7a! Translator adds Canadian French"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Image: Ch\u00e2teau Frontenac in Ville de Qu\u00e9bec, Qu\u00e9bec, Canada<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Today, we are releasing Canadian French as a unique language option within Microsoft Translator. Previously, we offered French as a single language option and although the system could translate Canadian French, you could not specifically choose to translate to or from Canadian French rather than European French. Beginning today, you can select \u201cFrench (Canada)\u201d for Canadian French or \u201cFrench\u201d for European and other dialects of French for translations to or from any of the more than 70 languages<\/a> available in Microsoft Translator.<\/p>\n

Canadian French is available now in the Microsoft Translator apps<\/a> and Translator for Bing<\/a>. It is also available now, or will be available within the next few days in other products with translation provided by Microsoft Translator such as\u00a0Office, Immersive Reader, Edge, and other products and add-ins.<\/p>\n

You can add Canadian French text translation to or from more than 70 languages to your apps, websites, workflows, and tools with Azure Cognitive Services Translator<\/a>. You can also use Azure Cognitive Services Speech<\/a>, which combines Translator\u2019s AI-powered translation service with Speech\u2019s advanced speech recognition and speech synthesis, to add speech-to-speech or text-to-speech translation to your products.<\/p>\n

Why add Canadian French?<\/h2>\n

French is one of two official languages in Canada. Over seven million Canadians speak French as their first language (over 20% of the population of the nation), and another two million speak it as a second language. While the majority of French speakers live in the province of Qu\u00e9bec, many can also be found in every province and territory across Canada.<\/p>\n

Although Canadian French and European French are similar to one another and are mutually understandable, there can be significant differences in vocabulary, grammar, writing, and pronunciation. Canadian French also has many idioms and unique sayings that would be understood by people familiar with Canadian French, but would not make sense to a person who only spoke European French.<\/p>\n

An example of where the differences might be particularly noticeable would be instant messaging and social media. A French speaking Canadian may use different words to express themselves than someone in France, and the translation model that is used needs to be tuned to accurately translate what was written. Output translation in Canadian French may also differ from European French, but the differences will generally be less pronounced.<\/p>\n

We worked with translators and consultants throughout Canada to produce models that could accurately translate Canadian French for all regions. As we continue to gather more data from Canada, our systems will get even more accurate over time.<\/p>\n

Differences in vocabulary<\/h2>\n

There are many ways in which vocabulary can differ between Canadian French and European French. One of the most obvious is that the two regions may prefer different words or expressions to refer to the same thing. For example, in France after the long work week you\u2019d be excited for the \u201cweek-end\u201d, however in Canada, particularly in Qu\u00e9bec, you\u2019d be relieved that it was the \u201cfin de semaine\u201d (literally: \u201cend of week\u201d). If you were parking your car in France, you\u2019d look for \u201cparking\u201d, but in Canada you\u2019d look for \u201cstationnement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sometimes, you may use the same word but it would mean different things in Canadian French and European French. For instance, in France you would refer to your cell phone as your \u201cportable\u201d, however if a French speaking Canadian heard the word \u201cportable\u201d, he or she would think you were talking about your laptop. Similarly, if you were to take some notes in your \u201ccartable\u201d in Canada, Canadians would know you were taking notes in your \u201cring binder\u201d, however someone in France might be confused as to why you were taking notes in your \u201csatchel\u201d. If you invited someone over for \u201cd\u00eener\u201d in France, they would get there by 7 PM, but they would be there at noon for lunch in Canada.<\/p>\n

Canadian French also has some words that wouldn\u2019t be familiar to a French speaker in France. If you were to put on your mittens to go outside on a cold day, in Canada you\u2019d put on your \u201ccasquette et mitaines\u201d, but in France you\u2019d put on your \u201ccasquette et moufles\u201d<\/p>\n

There may also be some differences in word choice in different regions of Canada. A car is called \u201cvoiture\u201d in Qu\u00e9bec and Europe. In New Brunswick, although the word \u201cvoiture\u201d is used, the word \u201cchar\u201d is more common. The new Canadian French model would be able to better translate Canadian French than the European model, regardless of region.<\/p>\n

Below are some additional examples of differences in official technical languages between Canadian and European French. The European examples are from the French Minist\u00e8re de la culture and the Canadian examples are from the Office Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois de la Langue Fran\u00e7aise, and the Government of Canada\u2019s Translation Bureau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
European French<\/strong><\/th>\nCanadian French<\/strong><\/th>\nEnglish<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Filoutage<\/td>\nHame\u00e7onnage<\/td>\nPhishing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Courriel non sollicit\u00e9<\/td>\nPourriel<\/td>\nSpam<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Audio \u00e0 la demande<\/td>\nBaladodiffusion<\/td>\nPodcast<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Administrateur de site<\/td>\nWebmestre<\/td>\nWebmaster<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Grammatical differences<\/h2>\n

Written formal text in European French will be readily comprehensible by a Canadian French speaker, however there are some differences such as the use of \u201con\u201d instead of \u201cnous\u201d that is more frequent in familiar texts and social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
European French<\/strong><\/th>\nCanadian French<\/strong><\/th>\nEnglish<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Nous allons aller au cin\u00e9ma<\/td>\nOn va aller au cin\u00e9ma (Qu\u00e9bec)
\nOn s\u2019en va voir un film (Ontario)<\/td>\n		We’re going to go to the movies.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C\u2019est ce que nous allons faire<\/td>\nC\u2019est \u00e7a qu\u2019on va faire<\/td>\nThat’s what we’re going to do<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C\u2019est ce que nous pensons<\/td>\nC\u2019est \u00e7a qu\u2019on pense<\/td>\nThat’s what we think<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Most grammatical differences between European French and Canadian French will be more obvious in spoken, familiar language. These include the systematic shortening of many prepositions. For instance, in Europe someone may say \u201cSur la table\u201d to say \u201cOn the table.\u201d In Qu\u00e9bec, someone may shorten that to \u201cS\u2019a table\u201d, and in New Brunswick it may be shortened to \u201cSu la table\u201d. Canadian French may also include older terminology known as archaisms that are not used, or are rarely used, in European French.<\/p>\n

Preposition shortening:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
European French<\/strong><\/th>\nCanadian French<\/strong><\/th>\nEnglish<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Dans les<\/td>\nDins<\/td>\nIn the<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elle m\u2019a dit<\/td>\nA m\u2019a dit<\/td>\nShe told me<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Il m\u2019a dit<\/td>\nY m\u2019a dit<\/td>\nHe told me<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Je suis<\/td>\nChus<\/td>\nI am<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Archaisms:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
European French<\/strong><\/th>\nCanadian French<\/strong><\/th>\nEnglish<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Parce que<\/td>\n\u00c0 cause que<\/td>\nBecause<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
En ce moment<\/td>\nPr\u00e9sentement (Qu\u00e9bec)
\nAsteur (or \u201cAstheure\u201d, New Bruswick)<\/td>\n		Now<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Differences in pronunciation<\/h2>\n

Some pronunciation differences that were present in France during the colonization of the Nouvelle-France (New France) are still present in Canada today while they have disappeared in European French. For example, in Canadian French, \u201cma\u00eetre\u201d and \u201cmettre\u201d (\u201cmaster\u201d and \u201cto put\u201d) will sound different, whereas they sound similar in European French. The same goes for \u201cp\u00e2te\u201d and \u201cpatte\u201d (\u201cdough\u201d and \u201cleg\u201d). These differences will be most noticeable by French speakers. Here some examples with sound provided by Cognitive Services Speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
French<\/strong><\/th>\nEuropean French Pronunciation<\/strong><\/th>\nCanadian French Pronunciation<\/strong><\/th>\nEnglish<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
L’\u00e9l\u00e8ve est devenu le ma\u00eetre<\/td>\n
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