L'Institut de France building

L'Académie française, or the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. This article is about a cardinal For information on the Russian also called The Red Eminence, see Mikhail Andreyevich Suslov. For the cognac see Louis XIII de Rémy Martin. Louis XIII ( September 27, 1601 – May 14, 1643) Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution, it was restored in 1803 by Napoleon Bonaparte (the Académie considers itself to have been suspended, not suppressed, during the revolution). The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821 was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the History of Europe. It is the oldest of the five académies of the Institut de France. The Institut de France (French Institute is a French Learned society, grouping five académies, the most famous of which is probably the Académie

The Académie consists of forty members, known as immortels (immortals). New members are elected by the members of the Académie itself. Académicians hold office for life, but they may be removed for misconduct. The body has the task of acting as an official authority on the language; it is charged with publishing an official dictionary of the language. Its rulings, however, are only advisory; not binding on either the public or the government.

History

Cardinal Richelieu was responsible for the establishment of the Académie française.

The Académie's origins lie in an informal group that grew out of the salons held at the Hôtel de Rambouillet, which discussed literature during the late 1620s and early 1630s. A salon is a gathering of stimulating people of quality under the roof of an inspiring hostess or host partly to amuse one another and partly to refine their taste and increase their knowledge through The Hôtel de Rambouillet was the Paris residence of Madame de Rambouillet, who ran a renowned literary salon there from about 1607 until her Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister of France, later took the body under his protection. In anticipation of the formal creation of the body, several members were appointed in 1634. On 22 February 1635, at Richelieu's urging, King Louis XIII granted letters patent formally establishing the body; the letters patent were registered at the Parlement de Paris on 10 July 1637. Events 1495 - King Charles VIII of France enters Naples to claim the city's throne Letters patent are a type of Legal instrument in the form of an Open letter issued by a Monarch or Government, granting an office right This article is for the Ancien Régime institution For the post-Revolutionary and present-day institution see French Parliament. Events 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium, Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia. The Académie française was responsible for the regulation of French grammar, spelling, and literature.

During the French Revolution, the National Convention suppressed all royal académies, including the Académie française. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an During the French Revolution, the National Convention or Convention, in France, comprised the Constitutional and legislative assembly In 1792, the election of new members to replace those who died was prohibited; in 1793, the académies were themselves abolished. They were all replaced in 1795 by a single body called the Institut de France, or Institute of France. Napoleon Bonaparte, as First Consul, decided to restore the former académies, but only as "classes" or divisions of the Institut de France. First Consul (Premier Consul was a title used by Napoleon Bonaparte following his seizure of power in France. The second class of the Institut was responsible for the French language, and corresponded to the former Académie française. When King Louis XVIII came to the throne in 1816, each class regained the title of "Académie"; accordingly, the second class of the Institut became the Académie française. Louis XVIII (17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824 Louis Stanislas Xavier de France, was a King of France and Navarre. Since 1816, the existence of the Académie française has been uninterrupted.

The President of France is the "protector" or patron of the Académie. The President of the French Republic (Président de la République française colloquially referred to in English as the President of France, is France 's elected Cardinal Richelieu originally fulfilled this role; upon his death in 1642, Pierre Séguier, the Chancellor of France, succeeded him. This article is about a cardinal For information on the Russian also called The Red Eminence, see Mikhail Andreyevich Suslov. Pierre Séguier ( May 28, 1588 - January 28, 1672) was a French statesman chancellor of France from 1635 This page is a list of French justice ministers. Under the Ancien régime, the French minister responsible for the judiciary was the Chancellor King Louis XIV took over the function when Séguier died in 1672; since then, the French head of state has always served as the Académie's protector. Early years Birth and ancestry Louis XIV was born in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye on September 5 1638 and bore the Heir apparent From 1672 to 1805, the official meetings of the Académie were held at the Louvre; since 1805, the Académie française has met at the Collège des Quatre Nations (now known as the Palais de l'Institut). The Louvre Museum (Musée du Louvre located in Paris is the world's most visited art museum a historic monument and a national museum of France The remaining académies of the Institut de France also meet at the Palais de l'Institut.

Membership

The Académie française has forty seats, each of which is assigned a separate number. Candidatures are made to a seat, not to the Académie: if several seats are vacant, a candidate may apply separately for each. Since a newly elected member has to eulogise his predecessor when elected, it has happened that people refused to apply for certain seats because they disliked the predecessor too much.

Members are known as les immortels (the immortals) because of the motto, À l'immortalité ("To immortality"), that appears on the official seal of the body granted by Cardinal Richelieu. A motto (from the Italian word motto, meaning witticism sentence is a phrase meant to formally describe the general motivation or intention of a social group One of the immortels is chosen by his or her counterparts to be the Académie's Permanent Secretary; the Permanent Secretary serves for life, or until resignation. The Académie may, furthermore, appoint a former Permanent Secretary to the office of Honorary Permanent Secretary. The most senior member, by date of election, is the Dean of the Académie.

New members are elected by the Académie itself (the original members were appointed). When a seat falls vacant, a person may apply to the Secretary if they wish to become a candidate. Alternatively, the existing members may nominate other candidates. A candidate is elected only if he or she receives the votes of a majority of members voting; the quorum is twenty members. In Law, a quorum is the minimum number of members of a Deliberative body necessary to conduct the business of that group If no candidate receives an absolute majority, another election must be held at a later date. The election is valid only if the protector of the Académie, the President of France, grants his approval. The President's approbation, however, is only a formality (there was only once a controversy about the candidature of Paul Morand, which de Gaulle opposed in 1958. Paul Morand (b March 13 1888, Paris. d July 24 1976) was a French Diplomat, Novelist, Playwright Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle ( ( 22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970) was a French General and statesman who led the Free French Morand was finally elected 10 years later, and was received without the customary visit of investiture to the Élysée). Then, the new member is installed at a sitting of the Académie. The new member must deliver a speech to the Académie, in which he or she must eulogise the member being replaced, and then listen to a speech made by one of the Academicians. A eulogy is a speech or writing in Praise of a person or thing Eight days thereafter, a public reception is held, during which the new member makes a speech thanking his counterparts for his election. A case happened of a member (Georges de Porto-Riche) not being received because the eulogy he made of his predecessor was not considered satisfactory by the commission of reading of the Académie, and he refused to rewrite it. Georges de Porto-Riche (May 20 1849 in Bordeaux, France – September 5 1930 in Paris) was a French Dramatist and Novelist. Georges Clemenceau refused to be received because he feared that he might be received by his enemy Raymond Poincaré. Georges Benjamin Clemenceau ( Mouilleron-en-Pareds ( Vendée) 28 September 1841 24 November 1929 was a French statesman physician and Journalist Raymond Poincaré (20 August 1860 – 15 October 1934 was a French conservative Statesman who served as Prime Minister of France on five

Members remain in the Académie for life. However, the body may expel an academician for grave misconduct. The first expulsion came in 1638, when Auger de Moléon de Granier was removed for theft. The most recent expulsions came at the end of the Second World War; Abel Bonnard, Abel Hermant, Philippe Pétain, and Charles Maurras were all excluded for their association with the Vichy regime. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Abel Bonnard ( December 19, 1883 &ndash May 31, 1968) was a French poet novelist and politician Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951 generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain ( Maréchal Pétain) __FORCETOC__ Charles Maurras ( 20 April 1868 Martigues Bouches-du-Rhône France – 16 November 1952) was Vichy France, or the Vichy regime are the common terms used to describe the government of France from July 1940 to August 1944 In total, twenty members have been expelled from the Académie.

Raymond Poincaré was one of the five French heads of state who became members of the Académie française. He is depicted wearing the habit vert, or green habit, of the Académie.

There have been a total of 710 immortels, of whom four have been women (the first woman, Marguerite Yourcenar, was elected in 1980 — besides the four elected women, 14 women were candidates, the first one in 1874). Marguerite Yourcenar was the Pseudonym of French Novelist Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie Ghislaine Cleenewerck de Crayencour ( Brussels Individuals who are not citizens of France may be, and have been, elected. Moreover, although most academicians are writers, one need not be a member of the literary profession to become a member. The Académie has included numerous politicians, lawyers, scientists, historians, philosophers, and senior Roman Catholic clergymen. Five French heads of state (Adolphe Thiers, Raymond Poincaré, Paul Deschanel, Philippe Pétain, and Valéry Giscard d'Estaing), and one foreign head of state (Léopold Sédar Senghor of Senegal) have been members. Louis-Adolphe fr Thiers ( Marseille, 16 April 1797&ndash3 September 1877 was a French politician and Historian. Raymond Poincaré (20 August 1860 – 15 October 1934 was a French conservative Statesman who served as Prime Minister of France on five Paul Eugène Louis Deschanel (13 February 1855 - 28 April 1922 was a French statesman Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951 generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain ( Maréchal Pétain) Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard d'Estaing (born 2 February 1926 is a French centre - right politician who was President of the French Sir Léopold Sédar Senghor ( 9 October 1906 20 December 2001) was a Senegalese Poet, politician and cultural theorist who Senegal (le Sénégal officially the Republic of Senegal, is a country south of the Sénégal River in western Africa. Other famous academicians include Louis, duc de Broglie, Alexandre Dumas, fils, Victor Hugo, Charles, baron de Montesquieu, Louis Pasteur, Henri Poincaré, and Voltaire. Louis-Victor-Pierre-Raymond 7th duc de Broglie, FRS (də bʁœj ( August 15 1892 &ndash March 19 1987) was a French Alexandre Dumas Fils (French for son similar to Junior in English ( July 27, 1824 &ndash November 27, 1895) was Victor-Marie Hugo ( ( February 26, 1802 – May 22, 1885) was a French Poet, Playwright, Novelist Charles-Louis de Secondat baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (Eng Louis Pasteur (27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895 a French Chemist and Microbiologist, is best known for remarkable breakthroughs in the causes and Jules Henri Poincaré ( 29 April 1854 &ndash 17 July 1912) (ˈʒyl ɑ̃ˈʁi pwɛ̃kaˈʁe was a French Mathematician François-Marie Arouet ( 21 November 1694 30 May 1778) better known by the Pen name Voltaire, was a French

Many notable French writers have not become members of the Académie française. In 1855, the writer Arsène Houssaye devised the expression "forty-first seat" for deserving individuals who were never elected to the Académie, either because their candidacies were rejected, because they were never candidates, or because they died before appropriate vacancies arose. Arsène Houssaye ( March 28, 1815 - February 26, 1896) French Novelist, Poet and man of letters was born at Notable figures in French literature who never became academicians include Jean Jacques Rousseau, Honoré de Balzac, René Descartes, Denis Diderot, Gustave Flaubert, Molière, Marcel Proust, Jules Verne, and Émile Zola. Denis Diderot ( October 5, 1713 – July 31, 1784) was a French Philosopher and writer Gustave Flaubert (gystaːv flobɛːʁ in French ( December 12, 1821 &ndash May 8, 1880) was a French writer who is counted among Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, also known by his Stage name, Molière, ( January 15, 1622 – February 17 1673) was a French Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust (maʁsɛl pʁust (10 July 1871 &ndash 18 November 1922 was a French Novelist Essayist and Critic Jules Gabriel Verne ( February 8 1828 &ndash March 24 1905) was a French Author who pioneered the science-fiction Émile François Zola ( (2 April 1840 &ndash 29 September 1902 was an influential French Writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of

The official uniform of an academician is known as l'habit vert, or the green habit. The habit vert, worn at the Académie's foreign ceremonies, was first adopted during Napoleon Bonaparte's reorganisation of the Institut de France. It consists of a long black coat and black feathered cocked hat (officially called a bicorne), each heavily embroidered with golden-green leaf motifs, together with black trousers or skirt. The cocked hat is a style of formal Headgear, or Hat, worn by certain civilian military and naval officials from the mid- 19th Century The bicorne or bicorn (two-cornered is an archaic form of hat associated with the late 18th and early 19th centuries Furthermore, members receive a ceremonial sword (l'épée), except Academicians who are women or clergymen, who do not receive swords.

Functions

The Académie is France's official authority on the usages, vocabulary, and grammar of the French language, although its recommendations carry no legal power — sometimes, even governmental authorities disregard the Académie's rulings. The Académie publishes a dictionary of the French language, known as the Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, which is regarded as official in France. The Dictionnaire de l'Académie française is the official Dictionary of the French language in France. A special Commission composed of several (but not all) of the members of the Académie undertakes the compilation of the work. The Académie has completed eight editions of the dictionary, which have been published in 1694, 1718, 1740, 1762, 1798, 1835, 1878, and 1935. It continues work on the ninth edition, of which the first volume (A to Enzyme) appeared in 1992, and the second volume (Éocène to Mappemonde) in 2000. In 1778, the Académie attempted to compile a "historical dictionary" of the French language; this idea, however, was later abandoned, the work never progressing past the letter A.

As French culture has come under increasing pressure with the widespread availability of English media, the Académie has tried to prevent the anglicisation of the French language. The Culture of France and of the French people has been shaped by its geography, by profound historical events, and by foreign and English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Anglicisation or anglicization (see -ise vs -ize) is a process of conversion of verbal or written elements of any other language into a more comprehensible English For example, the Académie has recommended, with mixed success, that some loanwords from English (such as walkman, software and email) be avoided, in favour of words derived from French (baladeur, logiciel, and courriel respectively). A loanword (or loan word) is a word directly taken into one Language from another with little or no translation Moreover, the Académie has worked to modernise French orthography. The orthography of a language specifies the correct way of using a specific Writing system to write the language The body, however, has sometimes been criticised for behaving in an excessively conservative fashion. A recent controversy involved the officialisation of feminine equivalents for the names of several professions. For instance, in 1997, Lionel Jospin's government began using the feminine noun "la ministre" to refer to a female minister, following the official practice of Canada, Belgium and Switzerland and a common, though until then unofficial, practice in France. Lionel Jospin (born 12 July 1937 is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France, during the third " cohabitation " The Académie, however, insisted on the traditional use of the masculine noun, "le ministre," for a minister of either gender. Use of either form remains controversial.

Prizes

See also: Grand prix du roman de l'Académie française

The Académie française is responsible for awarding several different prizes in various fields (including literature, poetry, theatre, cinema, history, and translation). Le Grand Prix du Roman is a French Literary award, created in 1918 and given each year by the Académie française List of the laureates Almost all of the prizes have been created in the twentieth century, and only two prizes were awarded before 1780. In total, the Académie awards over sixty prizes, most of them annually.

The most important prize is the grand prix de la francophonie, which was instituted in 1986, and is funded by the governments of France, Canada, Monaco, and Morocco. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For other uses see Monaco (disambiguation Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco ( French: Principauté de Monaco; Monégasque Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa Other important prizes include the grand prix de littérature (for a literary work), the grand prix du roman (for a novel), the grand prix de poésie (for poetry), the grand prix de philosophie (for a philosophical work), and the grand prix Gobert (for a work on French history).

Current members

The members of the Académie française are listed by seat number :

Notes

See also

• List of all members, past and present, of the Académie française
• List of language academies
• Language policy in France
• Office québécois de la langue française
• Montyon Prizes
• Real Academia Española (modeled after the French Academy)
• Svenska Akademien (modeled after the French Academy)
• Conseil international de la langue française

References

• Vincent, Leon H. This is a list of members of the Académie française (French Academy by seat number This is a list of bodies that regulate Standard languages Natural languages Auxiliary languages Interlingua The auxiliary language France has one Official language, the French language. The French government does not regulate the choice of language in publications by individuals but The Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF (Quebec Board of the French language is a public organization established on March 24, 1961 by the Liberal Montyon Prizes ( Prix Montyon) are a series of prizes awarded annually by the Académie Française. The Real Academia Española (“Royal Spanish Academy” the RAE, is the official royal institution responsible for regulating the Spanish language The Swedish Academy (Svenska Akademien founded in 1786 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. The Conseil international de la langue française (International Council for the French Language is an association formed in 1968 in Paris whose mission it to enrich (1901). The French Academy. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

External links

• L'Académie française (French)
• L'Académie française from the Scholarly Societies project.
• The French Academy by Jean le Bars, from The Catholic Encyclopedia Volume I, New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907.