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Miles Rationis
Joined: 08 May 2007
Location: Just Say No To Korea!
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 Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 5:36 pm Post subject: Can one still get by with French in Vietnam these days? |
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| I am curious.... |
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uberscheisse
Joined: 02 Dec 2003
Location: japan is better than korea.
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 5:53 pm Post subject: |
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| not really. i tried speaking it a couple of times, only to older folks and got a quizzical look... i may have even offended them, i don't know. |
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Miles Rationis
Joined: 08 May 2007
Location: Just Say No To Korea!
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:09 pm Post subject: |
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| uberscheisse wrote: |
| not really. i tried speaking it a couple of times, only to older folks and got a quizzical look... i may have even offended them, i don't know. |
Wieso nennst Du Dich Ueberscheisse?  |
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canuckistan
Mod Team
Joined: 17 Jun 2003
Location: Training future GS competitors.....
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:19 pm Post subject: |
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| The older, more educated Vietnamese who were civil servants etc still know French. A dying breed however. |
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Greekfreak
Joined: 25 May 2003
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:28 pm Post subject: |
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| We visited about 7 cities between Saigon and Hanoi and I only got to use it with French tourists. |
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indytrucks
Joined: 09 Apr 2003
Location: The Shelf
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:34 pm Post subject: |
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| I used some French in Laos and Cambodia a number of years ago. |
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Enrico Palazzo
Mod Team
Joined: 11 Mar 2008
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 7:23 pm Post subject: |
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| French in Vietnam? You would have a decent chance of using it North Africa, Lebanon, West Africa, but not really anywhere in Asia. French colonialism or ties to Asia were not so long lasting and France's reach was not as wide when it comes to Asia. |
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uberscheisse
Joined: 02 Dec 2003
Location: japan is better than korea.
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 7:35 pm Post subject: |
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| Miles Rationis wrote: |
| uberscheisse wrote: |
| not really. i tried speaking it a couple of times, only to older folks and got a quizzical look... i may have even offended them, i don't know. |
Wieso nennst Du Dich Ueberscheisse? |
nein.
french-canadian, through and through. i just like funny things. |
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Miles Rationis
Joined: 08 May 2007
Location: Just Say No To Korea!
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 10:06 pm Post subject: |
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| Enrico Palazzo wrote: |
| French in Vietnam? You would have a decent chance of using it North Africa, Lebanon, West Africa, but not really anywhere in Asia. French colonialism or ties to Asia were not so long lasting and France's reach was not as wide when it comes to Asia. |
Is this a mod warning? |
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PGF
Joined: 27 Nov 2006
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| Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 11:15 pm Post subject: |
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| Enrico Palazzo wrote: |
| French in Vietnam? ....French colonialism or ties to Asia were not so long lasting and France's reach was not as wide when it comes to Asia. |
are you joking? |
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friendoken
Joined: 19 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 7:45 am Post subject: |
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| I recently spent three weeks in Laos during March break from school and spoke French everyday with both Lao people and tourists. I was surprised actually, French is the second official language in Laos and many, if not most, of the older educated people speak it. All government buildings have their signs written in Laos and French. There is a French Academy that teaches students from grade 1 through high school that is very prestigious. |
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SarcasmKills
Joined: 07 Apr 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 12:19 pm Post subject: |
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| PGF wrote: |
| Enrico Palazzo wrote: |
| French in Vietnam? ....French colonialism or ties to Asia were not so long lasting and France's reach was not as wide when it comes to Asia. |
are you joking? |
This made me chuckle as well...
I was there about 4 years ago and was able to speak it with tons of elders there.. mostly in the Danang/Hoi An area, but was able to use it a bit in the Hanoi area as well... |
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PGF
Joined: 27 Nov 2006
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| Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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| SarcasmKills wrote: |
| PGF wrote: |
| Enrico Palazzo wrote: |
| French in Vietnam? ....French colonialism or ties to Asia were not so long lasting and France's reach was not as wide when it comes to Asia. |
are you joking? |
This made me chuckle as well...
I was there about 4 years ago and was able to speak it with tons of elders there.. mostly in the Danang/Hoi An area, but was able to use it a bit in the Hanoi area as well... |
yeah, it's like asking, "do they speak French in Dibouti".... |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2008 9:03 pm Post subject: |
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| friendoken wrote: |
| I recently spent three weeks in Laos during March break from school and spoke French everyday with both Lao people and tourists. I was surprised actually, French is the second official language in Laos and many, if not most, of the older educated people speak it. All government buildings have their signs written in Laos and French. There is a French Academy that teaches students from grade 1 through high school that is very prestigious. |
Just a minor point: the name of the language there is Laotian.
Anyway, in the three countries formerly known as French Indochina, the "upper crust" still manage to get along in French, apparently. I've seen a number of interviews in which the Cambodian, Laotian, or Vietnamese interviewee participates in fluent French. No doubt, some poor soul from the boondocks isn't going to be conversant in French, though. |
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friendoken
Joined: 19 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Sun Apr 13, 2008 9:56 am Post subject: |
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| CentralCali wrote: |
| friendoken wrote: |
| I recently spent three weeks in Laos during March break from school and spoke French everyday with both Lao people and tourists. I was surprised actually, French is the second official language in Laos and many, if not most, of the older educated people speak it. All government buildings have their signs written in Laos and French. There is a French Academy that teaches students from grade 1 through high school that is very prestigious. |
Just a minor point: the name of the language there is Laotian.
Anyway, in the three countries formerly known as French Indochina, the "upper crust" still manage to get along in French, apparently. I've seen a number of interviews in which the Cambodian, Laotian, or Vietnamese interviewee participates in fluent French. No doubt, some poor soul from the boondocks isn't going to be conversant in French, though. |
Everybody I spoke to there refer to their language as Laos, as does the CIA website. I thought Laotion is another accepted name for the people themselves, although they also refer to themselves as Lao. I am sure that both are acceptable to anyone other than the extremely focused rhetorician. |
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