The first time a French friend asked me:
Tu connais des pays francophones en Afrique ? /ty kɔ.nɛ de pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn ɑ̃ na.fʁik/ — “Do you know any French-speaking countries in Africa?”
…I proudly answered something like: “Euh… France? Canada? And… Paris?”
He looked at me, very gently, the way you look at a confused baby yak seeing a roundabout for the first time. That was the evening I discovered La Francophonie /la fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔ.ni/ — the French-speaking world — is much bigger than la France /la fʁɑ̃s/ — France — and Paris /pa.ʁi/ is definitely not a country.
In this guide, you’ll meet the main pays francophones /pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn/ — French-speaking countries — their capitales /ka.pi.tal/ — capitals — and some useful phrases to talk about where people are from.
Quick Primer: What Is “La Francophonie”?
La Francophonie /la fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔ.ni/ — the French-speaking world — can mean two things:
- The cultural and linguistic space where French is spoken (as a first language, second language, or important working language).
- The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) — a group of states that cooperate around the French language.
A pays francophone /pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn/ is usually a country where:
- French is an official language /ɔ.fi.sjɛl/, or
- French is widely used in administration, education, or business.
Important vocabulary:
French | IPA | English
un pays francophone | /œ̃ pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn/ | a French-speaking country
la capitale | /la ka.pi.tal/ | the capital
une langue officielle | /yn lɑ̃ɡ ɔ.fi.sjɛl/ | an official language
une langue maternelle | /yn lɑ̃ɡ ma.tɛʁ.nɛl/ | a native language
With that in mind, let’s tour the francophone world.
Europe’s French-Speaking Core
Europe is where French first grew up, before it started collecting extra continents.
Main Francophone Countries In Europe
| French country | IPA | English | Capital (French) | IPA | English |
| la France | /la fʁɑ̃s/ | France | Paris | /pa.ʁi/ | Paris |
| la Belgique | /la bɛl.ʒik/ | Belgium | Bruxelles | /bʁy.k.sɛl/ | Brussels |
| la Suisse | /la sɥis/ | Switzerland | Berne | /bɛʁn/ | Bern |
| le Luxembourg | /lə lyk.sɑ̃.buʁ/ | Luxembourg | Luxembourg | /lyk.sɑ̃.buʁ/ | Luxembourg City |
| Monaco | /mɔ.na.ko/ | Monaco | Monaco | /mɔ.na.ko/ | Monaco |
A few key points:
- In la Belgique, French shares space with Dutch (Flemish) and German.
- In la Suisse, French lives alongside German, Italian, and Romansh.
- Monaco is tiny but very, very good at yachts.
Useful sentence pattern:
Je vis en France, mais je travaille souvent en Belgique.
/ʒə vi ɑ̃ fʁɑ̃s mɛ ʒə tʁa.vaj su.vɑ̃ ɑ̃ bɛl.ʒik/
I live in France, but I often work in Belgium.
Canada And North America
If you go far enough across the Atlantic, French pops up again — this time with maple syrup.
Canada And Québec
Le Canada /lə ka.na.da/ — Canada — has two official languages: French and English.
The capital is Ottawa /ɔ.ta.wa/, but the most famous French-speaking areas are in le Québec /lə ke.bɛk/ — Quebec.
Important places:
French | IPA | English
la ville de Québec | /la vil də ke.bɛk/ | Quebec City (capital of Quebec)
Montréal | /mɔ̃.ʁe.al/ | Montreal (largest city in Quebec)
Example sentence:
Je veux visiter le Québec et pratiquer mon français.
/ʒə vø vi.zi.te lə ke.bɛk e pʁa.ti.ke mɔ̃ fʁɑ̃.sɛ/
I want to visit Quebec and practise my French.
Usage note:
People from Quebec often say le français québécois /lə fʁɑ̃.sɛ ke.be.kwa/ — Quebec French — which has its own accent and expressions but is still very much French.
Africa: The Giant Of La Francophonie
The biggest number of French speakers today is in l’Afrique /la.fʁik/ — Africa. French often coexists with many local languages.
Some Key Francophone African Countries
| French country | IPA | English | Capital (French) | IPA | English |
| le Sénégal | /lə se.ne.ɡal/ | Senegal | Dakar | /da.kaʁ/ | Dakar |
| la Côte d’Ivoire | /la kot di.vwaʁ/ | Ivory Coast | Yamoussoukro | /ja.mu.su.kʁo/ | Yamoussoukro |
| le Mali | /lə ma.li/ | Mali | Bamako | /ba.ma.ko/ | Bamako |
| le Niger | /lə ni.ʒɛʁ/ | Niger | Niamey | /nja.mɛ/ | Niamey |
| le Burkina Faso | /lə buʁ.ki.na fa.zo/ | Burkina Faso | Ouagadougou | /wa.ɡa.du.ɡu/ | Ouagadougou |
| le Bénin | /lə be.nɛ̃/ | Benin | Porto-Novo | /pɔʁ.to.nɔ.vo/ | Porto-Novo |
| le Togo | /lə tɔ.ɡo/ | Togo | Lomé | /lɔ.me/ | Lomé |
| le Cameroun | /lə ka.mə.ʁun/ | Cameroon | Yaoundé | /ja.un.de/ | Yaoundé |
| la République démocratique du Congo | /la ʁe.py.blɪk de.mɔ.kʁa.tik dy kɔ̃.ɡo/ | DR Congo | Kinshasa | /kɛ̃.ʃa.sa/ | Kinshasa |
| la République du Congo | /la ʁe.py.blik dy kɔ̃.ɡo/ | Republic of Congo | Brazzaville | /bʁa.za.vil/ | Brazzaville |
| le Gabon | /lə ɡa.bɔ̃/ | Gabon | Libreville | /li.bʁə.vil/ | Libreville |
| le Tchad | /lə tʃad/ | Chad | N’Djamena | /n.dʒa.me.na/ | N’Djamena |
In many of these countries:
- French is used in administration, school, media, and business.
- People often grow up with one or more local languages at home plus French at school.
Example:
Le Sénégal est un pays francophone où beaucoup de gens parlent aussi le wolof.
/lə se.ne.ɡal ɛ œ̃ pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn u bo.ku də ʒɑ̃ paʁl o.si lə wɔ.lɔf/
Senegal is a French-speaking country where many people also speak Wolof.
Islands And Overseas French Territories
French also lives on sunny islands and in far-away regions that are still part of la France or closely linked to it.
Overseas Departments And Territories
| French | IPA | English | Capital (French) | IPA | English |
| la Guadeloupe | /la ɡwa.də.lup/ | Guadeloupe (Caribbean, French dept.) | Basse-Terre | /bas.tɛʁ/ | Basse-Terre |
| la Martinique | /la maʁ.ti.nik/ | Martinique (Caribbean, French dept.) | Fort-de-France | /fɔʁ.də.fʁɑ̃s/ | Fort-de-France |
| la Guyane (française) | /la ɡɥi.jan fʁɑ̃.sɛz/ | French Guiana | Cayenne | /ka.jɛn/ | Cayenne |
| La Réunion | /la ʁe.y.njɔ̃/ | Réunion (Indian Ocean) | Saint-Denis | /sɛ̃.də.ni/ | Saint-Denis |
| la Polynésie française | /la pɔ.li.ne.zi fʁɑ̃.sɛz/ | French Polynesia | Papeete | /pa.pe.e.te/ | Papeete |
| la Nouvelle-Calédonie | /la nu.vɛl ka.le.dɔ.ni/ | New Caledonia | Nouméa | /nu.me.a/ | Nouméa |
| les Seychelles | /le se.ʃɛl/ | Seychelles | Victoria | /vik.tɔ.ʁja/ | Victoria |
| les Comores | /le kɔ.mɔʁ/ | Comoros | Moroni | /mɔ.ʁɔ.ni/ | Moroni |
And of course, Haïti /a.i.ti/ — Haiti — in the Caribbean:
| French | IPA | English | Capital (French) | IPA | English |
| Haïti | /a.i.ti/ | Haiti | Port-au-Prince | /pɔʁ.to.pʁɛ̃s/ | Port-au-Prince |
In many of these places, French coexists with créoles /kʁe.ɔl/ — creole languages — and other local tongues.
Example:
Je rêve de visiter la Réunion et la Polynésie française.
/ʒə ʁɛv də vi.zi.te la ʁe.y.njɔ̃ e la pɔ.li.ne.zi fʁɑ̃.sɛz/
I dream of visiting Réunion and French Polynesia.
How To Talk About Countries, Capitals, And Nationalities In French
Now that you know who lives where, you need the grammar pieces to talk about it.
En, Au, Aux: Saying “In”
French uses different little words before country names:
- en + feminine country (and those starting with a vowel):
- en France /ɑ̃ fʁɑ̃s/ — in France
- en Belgique /ɑ̃ bɛl.ʒik/ — in Belgium
- en Haïti /ɑ̃ a.i.ti/ — in Haiti
- en France /ɑ̃ fʁɑ̃s/ — in France
- au + masculine country:
- au Canada /o ka.na.da/ — in Canada
- au Sénégal /o se.ne.ɡal/ — in Senegal
- au Maroc /o ma.ʁɔk/ — in Morocco
- au Canada /o ka.na.da/ — in Canada
- aux + plural countries:
- aux Seychelles /o se.ʃɛl/ — in the Seychelles
- aux Comores /o kɔ.mɔʁ/ — in the Comoros
- aux Seychelles /o se.ʃɛl/ — in the Seychelles
Pattern:
Je vis en France, mais je voudrais travailler au Canada.
/ʒə vi ɑ̃ fʁɑ̃s mɛ ʒə vud.ʁɛ tʁa.va.je o ka.na.da/
I live in France, but I’d like to work in Canada.
Nationalities And Adjectives
Nationalities change for masculine/feminine:
| French | IPA | English |
| français | /fʁɑ̃.sɛ/ | French (masc.) |
| française | /fʁɑ̃.sɛz/ | French (fem.) |
| canadien | /ka.na.djɛ̃/ | Canadian (masc.) |
| canadienne | /ka.na.djɛn/ | Canadian (fem.) |
| sénégalais | /se.ne.ɡa.lɛ/ | Senegalese (masc.) |
| sénégalaise | /se.ne.ɡa.lɛz/ | Senegalese (fem.) |
| suisse | /sɥis/ | Swiss (m/f) |
| belge | /bɛlʒ/ | Belgian (m/f) |
| haïtien | /a.i.sjɛ̃/ | Haitian (masc.) |
| haïtienne | /a.i.sjɛn/ | Haitian (fem.) |
Typical questions:
Tu es de quel pays ?
/ty ɛ də kɛl pɛ.i/
Which country are you from?
Tu es français ou canadien ?
/ty ɛ fʁɑ̃.sɛ u ka.na.djɛ̃/
Are you French or Canadian?
Je suis suisse, mais je vis au Sénégal.
/ʒə sɥi sɥis mɛ ʒə vi o se.ne.ɡal/
I’m Swiss, but I live in Senegal.
Usage Notes & Common Mistakes
- Countries are capitalised, nationalities and languages are not:
- Je viens de France, je parle français.
- Je viens de France, je parle français.
- Don’t say “I am from Paris city”; just:
- Je viens de Paris /ʒə vjɛ̃ də pa.ʁi/.
- Je viens de Paris /ʒə vjɛ̃ də pa.ʁi/.
- Don’t mix up Paris the city with la France the country (yes, it happens to a lot of beginners in fast conversations).
- Remember en Haïti (even though there’s no -e at the end) because it starts with a vowel sound and is traditionally treated like feminine for the preposition.
Region Notes: Different Flavours Of French Around The World
French in Paris, Montréal, and Dakar is still French, but it doesn’t sound exactly the same.
A few broad tendencies:
- In France, you’ll hear standard European French plus strong regional accents (south, north, etc.).
- In le Québec, vowels can be more open, rhythm is different, and you’ll hear expressions like c’est le fun /sɛ lə fɔn/ — “it’s fun.”
- In l’Afrique francophone you’ll hear dozens of local influences, with unique intonation and borrowed words.
For learners, this means:
- It’s normal if you understand Paris French more easily at first — most textbooks use it.
- Exposure to multiple accents (music, TV, YouTube) will slowly train your ear.
- When in doubt, people are usually happy to repeat things more slowly if you ask:
Vous pouvez répéter plus lentement, s’il vous plaît ?
/vu pu.ve ʁe.pe.te ply lɑ̃t.mɑ̃ sil vu plɛ/
Could you repeat more slowly, please?
Mini Dialogues (La Francophonie In Conversation)
Dialogue 1: Where Are You From?
Tu viens d’où ?
/ty vjɛ̃ du/
Where are you from?
Je viens d’Haïti, mais maintenant j’habite en France.
/ʒə vjɛ̃ d‿a.i.ti mɛ mɛ̃.tnɑ̃ ʒa.bit ɑ̃ fʁɑ̃s/
I’m from Haiti, but now I live in France.
Ah, super ! Tu parles français depuis longtemps ?
/a sy.pɛʁ ty paʁl fʁɑ̃.sɛ də.pɥi lɔ̃.tɑ̃/
Oh, nice! Have you spoken French for a long time?
Oui, c’est la langue officielle chez moi.
/wi sɛ la lɑ̃ɡ ɔ.fi.sjɛl ʃe mwa/
Yes, it’s the official language where I’m from.
Dialogue 2: Talking About Capitals
Tu connais la capitale du Sénégal ?
/ty kɔ.nɛ la ka.pi.tal dy se.ne.ɡal/
Do you know the capital of Senegal?
Oui, c’est Dakar, non ?
/wi sɛ da.kaʁ nɔ̃/
Yes, it’s Dakar, right?
Exactement, et la capitale du Canada ?
/ɛɡ.zak.tə.mɑ̃ e la ka.pi.tal dy ka.na.da/
Exactly, and the capital of Canada?
C’est Ottawa, mais tout le monde pense à Montréal.
/sɛ ɔ.ta.wa mɛ tu lə mɔ̃d pɑ̃s a mɔ̃.ʁe.al/
It’s Ottawa, but everyone thinks of Montreal.
Dialogue 3: Choosing A Francophone Destination
Si tu pouvais voyager dans n’importe quel pays francophone, tu irais où ?
/si ty pu.vɛ vwa.ja.ʒe dɑ̃ nɑ̃.pɔʁt kɛl pɛ.i fʁɑ̃.kɔ.fɔn ty i.ʁɛ u/
If you could travel to any French-speaking country, where would you go?
Je pense que j’irais au Sénégal ou au Québec.
/ʒə pɑ̃s kə ʒi.ʁɛ o se.ne.ɡal u o ke.bɛk/
I think I’d go to Senegal or Quebec.
Bonne idée, tu peux pratiquer ton français et manger très bien.
/bɔn i.de ty pø pʁa.ti.ke tɔ̃ fʁɑ̃.sɛ e mɑ̃.ʒe tʁɛ bjɛ̃/
Good idea, you can practise your French and eat very well.
Parfait, c’est tout ce que je veux.
/paʁ.fɛ sɛ tu sə kə ʒə vø/
Perfect, that’s all I want.
Quick Reference: Key Francophone Countries And Capitals
| French | IPA | English |
| la France — Paris | /la fʁɑ̃s — pa.ʁi/ | France — Paris |
| la Belgique — Bruxelles | /la bɛl.ʒik — bʁy.k.sɛl/ | Belgium — Brussels |
| la Suisse — Berne | /la sɥis — bɛʁn/ | Switzerland — Bern |
| le Luxembourg — Luxembourg | /lə lyk.sɑ̃.buʁ — lyk.sɑ̃.buʁ/ | Luxembourg — Luxembourg City |
| Monaco — Monaco | /mɔ.na.ko — mɔ.na.ko/ | Monaco — Monaco |
| le Canada — Ottawa | /lə ka.na.da — ɔ.ta.wa/ | Canada — Ottawa |
| le Québec — ville de Québec | /lə ke.bɛk — vil də ke.bɛk/ | Quebec — Quebec City |
| Haïti — Port-au-Prince | /a.i.ti — pɔʁ.to.pʁɛ̃s/ | Haiti — Port-au-Prince |
| le Sénégal — Dakar | /lə se.ne.ɡal — da.kaʁ/ | Senegal — Dakar |
| la Côte d’Ivoire — Yamoussoukro | /la kot di.vwaʁ — ja.mu.su.kʁo/ | Ivory Coast — Yamoussoukro |
| le Cameroun — Yaoundé | /lə ka.mə.ʁun — ja.un.de/ | Cameroon — Yaoundé |
| la République démocratique du Congo — Kinshasa | /la ʁe.py.blik de.mɔ.kʁa.tik dy kɔ̃.ɡo — kɛ̃.ʃa.sa/ | DR Congo — Kinshasa |
| la Guadeloupe — Basse-Terre | /la ɡwa.də.lup — bas.tɛʁ/ | Guadeloupe — Basse-Terre |
| la Martinique — Fort-de-France | /la maʁ.ti.nik — fɔʁ.də.fʁɑ̃s/ | Martinique — Fort-de-France |
| La Réunion — Saint-Denis | /la ʁe.y.njɔ̃ — sɛ̃.də.ni/ | Réunion — Saint-Denis |
Five-Minute Practice Plan (Francophonie Edition)
- Where You’d Go
Say out loud three sentences:
- Je veux visiter… + one European francophone country.
- Je veux visiter… + one African francophone country.
- Je veux visiter… + one island or overseas territory.
- Je veux visiter… + one European francophone country.
- Country–Capital Quiz (Self-Made)
On a piece of paper, write 5 pairs like:
- France — Paris
- Sénégal — Dakar
Cover one side, say the other from memory.
- France — Paris
- En, Au, Aux Drill
Create three true or imaginary sentences:
- Je vis en… (feminine)
- Je travaille au… (masculine)
- Je voudrais aller aux… (plural)
Read them twice.
- Je vis en… (feminine)
- Mini Self-Introduction With Francophonie
Say:
- Je viens de… (your country)
- Je veux apprendre le français pour voyager dans les pays francophones.
- Je viens de… (your country)
- Map Shadowing (Optional But Fun)
Look at a world map (on screen or paper) and point to three francophone countries while saying:
- C’est… + country + et la capitale, c’est…
- C’est… + country + et la capitale, c’est…
One More Stamp In Your Francophone Passport
Once you know where French is spoken — from Paris to Montréal, Dakar, Port-au-Prince, and Nouméa — the language stops being just a school subject and starts looking like what it really is: a huge network of places, people, and stories.
Next time someone asks Tu connais des pays francophones ?, you won’t just have an answer. You’ll have options — and maybe a favourite future destination.