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Added on the 28/01/2022 16:27:00 - Copyright : France 24 EN
Members of Istanbul's small Jewish community are fighting to save the language of their ancestors who were expelled from Spain in the 15th century: Ladino, or Judeo-Spanish, which is made up of old Castilian and several languages spoken under the Ottoman Empire. However, Ladino is now only spoken by a few thousand people in Turkey.
Some 55,000 pupils study Arabic at France's state schools. Most of them are the children of immigrants who want to stay in touch with their roots. While supporters argue these students are simply broadening their horizons, some conservative politicians warn the classes could hinder integration. The fact that Arabic teachers are recruited abroad and paid by their countries of origin is an additional source of concern. But France's education minister backs the classes, as this report explains.
This week, France in Focus is all about French, the fifth language in the world. French is thriving abroad with the majority of speakers in Africa, and the total number could more than double over the next few decades. Also, as English words keep creeping into everyday conversations, we go to the Académie Française to talk to Sir Michael Edwards, who is the first British member of this temple of the French language.
French is spoken in many countries in continental Africa, but South Africa has not been a place traditionally associated with the French language. That could be about to change, with French being increasingly synonymous with "chic". One university professor has tapped into this new energy to promote the Romance language.
The names of Oskar Schindler, Hans Calmeyer and Father Marie-Benoît are synonymous with heroism and the protection of Jews during World War II. But in the eastern French city of Nancy in July 1942, a handful of local police officers also made a courageous stand against the Nazi regime. That summer, they helped around 350 people escape deportation to concentration camps in what became known as the "failed round-up" of foreign Jews living there. None of these brave policemen were ever punished by the Germans for their actions. FRANCE 24's Renaud Lefort, Narimène Laouadi, Fabrice Birault and Thomas Waterhouse report.
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