How did French become the official language of Canada?

Many French people such as the Huguenots settled in Canada in its colonial and pre-colonial periods. There were trappers and traders, missionaries and Protestants escaping persecution. In parts of Canada, such as Quebec province, Francophones are in the majority.

The French were there first. Much like the Spaniards were in the current U.S. first, and many people here speak Spanish.

Jacques Cartier visited what we call Canada three times between 1534 and 1542. Samuel de Champlain participated in the first European colony north of Florida, on the North American continent, in 1607. In 1608, Champlain founded a permanent colony at what is now the city of Québec. The French controlled what is now Canada until Wolfe defeated Montcalm outside the city walls of Québec in 1759. They were not only there first, but many of their families have lived there for more than 400 years. The best source in English for the French colonies in the “New World” is the seven volume history written by Francis Parkman and published between 1865 and 1892.

I was under the impression that French is the official language of Quebec rather than all of Canada.

I do know that it’s mandatory for signage on buildings and streets to include a French version but that’s for Quebec only, not all of Canada.

@Buttonstc I just looked it up and English and French are now both the official languages of Canada . You’re right though about French being the main language in Quebec.

Ok. That makes more sense because there are huge stretches of Western Canada where French is not nearly as omnipresent as it is in Quebec.

I seem to remember Quebec threatening to secede over the issue of language a while back. I’m not sure if that’s still a thing or not.

French is the only official language of Québec. New Brunswick is the only province for which French and English are the two official languages. The Official Languages Acts (1968, 1988) make French and English the official languages of Canada, with equal emphasis, as far as regards Federal documents and courts.

I wonder how that works in the Canadian legal system in the case of a contract dispute. Are contracts required to be written in two languages? I can envision a problem with the interpretation of contract terms when two languages are in play. It seems that the finder of fact (the judge or the jury) would have to be bilingual in order for a just verdict to be arrived at. .

In most of Canada, contracts, as is the case with other legal codes, derives from English Common Law. In Québec, it derives from statute passed by the National Assembly (which is what les habitants call their legislature, when translated into English) and based on the civil code tradition of France. I suspect the legal language is well enough known that it would not be a problem for attorneys practicing there. In Federal legal practice, French and English are equally employed.

Ok..you mean separate laws / basis of them for Quebec and outside the region? Doesn’t it cause any issues?

Won’t it increase separatism within the region?

You’re getting off into deeper waters about the feelings of the native-French-speaking population of Canada. You also speak as though this were something new, which it is not. Québec was established as a French colony more than 400 years ago. The law defining French as the official language of Québec was passed in 1974. Native English-speakers in Québec have been unhappy with it since that time. Canada is, however, a confederation, and the Federal government is powerless to change that situation. I suspect that they’ll muddle along, as they’ve done ever since 1759, when the English took over there. It is important to note that the people of Québec have consistently voted to remain a part of Canada, although by a slim margin.