Comments by "" (@rvdb8876) on "History of The French Language" video.

  1.  @phlm9038  No, I don't mean that at all. It would be just as absurd to claim that the English would now speak German thanks to the Anglo-Saxons. There are those who try to compare contemporary English with contemporary German. That is allowed, but it is not the reality of "then". For the Anglo-Saxons who "then" arrived in England did not speak the standardized contemporary German (language) at all. It is therefore no longer entirely comparable, also given the centuries that have passed. At some point in history, languages ​​were standardized. Also German, where High German had an important influence. Low German in the north deviated from that standard German, but since standard German was/is the standard for all of Germany, the colloquial language in all of Germany has gradually become Standard German after centuries. Just as in France, standardized French became the standard throughout France after centuries. Even in regions where people did not speak French, such as in French Flanders (the region of Dunkirk). The Germanic dialects along the North Sea coast, the present Netherlands and Flanders, despite all their different dialects, had much in common in construction and sentence structure that differed quite a bit. from standard German. Here too, a standardization was required. The first initiatives for this came from Flanders. But the Netherlands became independent, while Flanders remained occupied by the Spaniards, Austrians, French, etc. In the Netherlands, this standardization was able to continue to develop. Belgium only became independent in 1830, but French was (then) the (only) official language. Although more than 60% (Flanders) did not speak this language. Anyway, that is (old) politics that also has/had its influence on language. Just look at the example of Ireland. If you are interested, search Wikipedia "History of the Dutch language".
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  2. In Belgium, where 40% of the population is French-speaking, "septante" et "nonante" is also used for 70 and 90. This is also the case in Luxembourg. In the north of Belgium, Flemish (Dutch) is spoken, a Germanic language that also descends from the same Germanic Franks who invaded the Galic areas now called the Netherlands, Belgium and France. But in the north of Belgium and also the Netherlands, this Germanic Frankish was not Romanized, or Latinized, as was the case more to the south.
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