Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development
Editor and Book Reviews Editor: John Edwards (St Francis Xavier University, Canada)
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Volume: 23 Number: 1 Page: 22–35
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Dutch/Flemish in the North of France
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Hugo Ryckeboer
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Some of the oldest sources of the Dutch language originate from the north of France, where also a lot of place names and family names give evidence of the historical presence of Dutch in that region, although
it was mostly called there Flemish. It was replaced there by old French in its Picard form from the 11th century onwards. The gradual transition of language and the corresponding moving up of the language
border lasted for about a thousand years. That border did not coincide with political borders, e.g. between the counties of Artesia and Flanders. After the annexation of great parts of Flanders by Louis
XIV in the 16th century a slow Frenchification of what is now the arrondisement of Dunkirk began. But Dutch continued to play its role as a cultural language until the French Revolution. The legislation
about language use in education and administration hastened the Frenchification of the upper class in the 19th century, especially in the towns. But it was not earlier than the period between the two world
wars and mainly after the Second World War that the oral Flemish dialect was increasingly given up. As a result, its disappearance is imminent.
© Multilingual Matters 2002
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