PARLEZ-VOUS FRANÇAIS? - CultureShock! A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette - page 304

important, for it was when separate French languages began
to be fused into one, and when the Francien dialect of the
Paris region supplanted the others, allowing the French
language—and ultimately France—to become unified.
By the 16th century, François I was using French instead
of Latin for official documents throughout the entire realm,
taking it beyond a spoken language. By the time of the French
Revolution, the language was pretty well-standardised across the
realm. And it is this French, which has not stopped evolving,
that is the basis of the French we speak (or try to) today.
LANGUAGE SCHOOLS
Learning French should be among your first priorities upon
taking up residence in Paris; there are many language
schools for foreigners. Depending on the course and the
school, students at some of these schools qualify to apply
for a student visa. Some also have programmes for au pairs ,
who must be registered in a recognised language course. The
programmes of the schools below are officially accredited,
but there are many others—check with the consulate in
your home country, which may have brochures of language
schools in Paris; the Paris Tourist Office website; FUSAC ,
which generally has detailed ads for such schools; and
Europa Pages (http://www.europa-pages.com/france/). Pick
a school that suits your needs and budget, and one that is
convenient enough for you to attend and not slack off.
You will learn enough at any of these schools to get around
and to read directions, instructions, advertisements and
listings for cultural events, but improving is up to you.
5 e : Cours de Civilisation et Langue Française de la
Sorbonne; 47 rue des Ecoles; tel: [phone]; fax:
01.43.22.37.56; website: http://www.ccfs-sorbonne.fr/
index.php. Serious language and culture courses at the
Sorbonne; high school diploma required.
6 e : Alliance Française; 101 boulevard Raspail; tel:
01.42.84.90.00; fax: [phone]; website: http://www.
alliancefr.org. Worldwide network of language schools.
General, business and customised language programmes,
as well as courses in French culture, literature, etc.