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Old French

1:51

The Sound of the Old French Language (La Chanson de Roland)

7:23

Evolution of French

11:56

Why French sounds so unlike other Romance languages

0:51

Louis' Oath - Reading [Early Old French] (Oaths of Strasbourg)

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Where did French come from?

Old French was the language spoken in Northern France from the 8th century to the 14th century. In the 14th century, these dialects came to be collectively known as the langue d'oïl, contrasting with the langue d'oc or Occitan language in the south of France. The mid-14th century is taken as the transitional period to Middle French, the language of the French Renaissance, specifically based on the dialect of the Île-de-France region.