If you are referring to the United States, no. The U.S. has never had ANY official language, not even English.
French became an official language in France in 1539 as a result of the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts issued by King Francis I. This decree established French as the language of legal and official documents in the country.
French is an official language within the United Nations, the International Olympics comittee, and many other international institutions. The term "lingua franca", meaning a language which could get you understood everywhere, literally means "French language" in Italian. Even if it is now overtaken by English, it is still used in many parts of the world.
French has been spoken in France since at the very latest around 842 (the year from which the Oath of Strasbourg dates, the oldest surviving French text). It was probably being spoken before then, since it takes a while for a spoken language to attain written form, particularly when the language of choice for writing at the time was Latin.
No natural language ever really starts or ends, it only changes. Like most Western languages, French took a more permanent, less fluctuant form with the emergence of the first printing presses, in the sixteenth century.
An indication of Portuguese as the main spoken language of a country is status as official language. Portuguese is the official language of the southwestern European country of Portugal. It also is the official language of countries that were once Portuguese colonies.In Africa, Portuguese is the official language of the former colonies of Angola, Cape Verde Islands, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, and Sao Tome and Principe. Also in Africa, it's one of the main languages spoken in Equatorial Guinea, where it shares official status with Spanish and French. And it's an important language in Mauritius and Senegal. There are Portuguese speakers in Morocco, and ever growing numbers in South Africa.In Asia, Portuguese is one of the main languages spoken on the island of East Timor. In fact, it shares official status with Tetum. And it's one of the main languages spoken in Macau. There, on the Chinese mainland, Portuguese shares official status with Chinese.And in South America, Portuguese is the main, official language of Brazil. It's also an important language in the neighboring South American country of The Co-operative Republic of Guyana. The official language of Guyana is English. But Portuguese is considered important enough that it's singled out as one of nine recognized regional languages.
No. No language was ever an official language of the US, not even English.
France, obviously, although the city of Québec, in what is today Canada, has existed for over 400 years and has had French as the official language ever since.
No such thing ever happened. It's a myth. No language has ever been voted "the official language" of the United States.
French became an official language in France in 1539 as a result of the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts issued by King Francis I. This decree established French as the language of legal and official documents in the country.
No bill ever made English the official language of the United States. The US does not have an official language.
It's actually a myth that the United States once was close to voting German as its official language; the United States does not now, nor has it ever, had an official language. English is used as the de facto official language, but there is in fact no legally official language in the United States. Several states have official languages. Louisiana has English and French; New Mexico has English and Spanish; Hawai'i has English and Hawai'ian; etc. If, theoretically, German or any other language were voted as the official language, in all likelihood there would be little change to how things are done already because English is so widely spoken.
No, but Cantonese used to be an unofficial language of business until the 1980s.
French is an official language within the United Nations, the International Olympics comittee, and many other international institutions. The term "lingua franca", meaning a language which could get you understood everywhere, literally means "French language" in Italian. Even if it is now overtaken by English, it is still used in many parts of the world.
Ever wonder what language The Roche Bobois website is in? The Roche Bobois is a French website that you can find available in both English and in French.
No. It has always been English.
French has been spoken in France since at the very latest around 842 (the year from which the Oath of Strasbourg dates, the oldest surviving French text). It was probably being spoken before then, since it takes a while for a spoken language to attain written form, particularly when the language of choice for writing at the time was Latin.
No natural language ever really starts or ends, it only changes. Like most Western languages, French took a more permanent, less fluctuant form with the emergence of the first printing presses, in the sixteenth century.