journey to Québec

[Couya]

Hi, everyone,
I'm now back in Malaga (nice and warm!) after a holiday in Québec/French-speaking Canada, where of course I saw no other kilts, but wore mine all the time as usual. My hosts had warned me about mosquito plagues and told me to bring a pair of protective trousers, but they remained unused, and the mosquitos left me alone, though the weather was damp and there are rivers and lakes everywhere.

On the plane, I suddenly had the idea of turning my kilt round, so that I would be sitting on the flat aprons instead of rumpllng the pleats. Indeed it was far better. The ample cloth from the back spread over my knees comfortably and modestly in whatever position I chose. Knowing what scorn some people pour on wearers that don't do things quite right, the infamous kilt-nazis, I simply swiveled the kilt back to the usual position on arrival. Why did I never think of this before?

No-one took any photos of me, nor did anyone look very surprised at seeing me kilted. My hosts, a couple who spend every winter here in Malaga to get away from the big freeze, did not mind what I wore, and visits to family and friends, museums and villages, were all very enjoyable. I'd always imagined Indian reserves to be in far away places, but Wendake turned out to be a just a few streets of Québec (city) indistinguishable from the rest, but for the sophisticted info centres and museums relating to native cultures.

If you speak French, you will probably not understand more than I did with the local accent, but the food, drink and company were all wonderful. On the way back, my seat was near the emergency exit where a flight attendant sat facing me. When we started talking he spoke fairly standard French, but as the conversation warmed up, it took all my concentration to follow what he was saying as he drifted into quebequish. Never mentioned my kilt, of course.

Martin

[Kirbstone]

Sounds like a wonderful trip, Martin. I had a sr.in-law who lived in Q. for years & could rabbit on in q'becoise at everybody. Couldn't catch a word! Alas she has passed on and we never have cause to visit there now.
I envy your heat in Malaga. We're having a beastly cold wet 'Summer' here this year.

Tom

[Reaper_Man]

Pretty dismal here in Leeds England, rain, rain and even more rain. so much for it being summer, the good news is i will be in Benidorm from Sunday for a week, skirts and dresses will be worn the whole time of course

[partlyscot]

There is a Quebec accent, but the actual French is closer to 17th century French than say, Parisian

Did your hosts take you Schwartz"s? I have very fond memories of their smoked meat...

[renesm1]

There is a Quebec accent, but the actual French is closer to 17th century French than say, Parisian

Did your hosts take you Schwartz"s? I have very fond memories of their smoked meat...

Funny. I was speaking to a colleague the other day about the Quebecoise accent. She tried to explain the difference between that and French French. The jist of it was that the the Quebecoise accent sounds a little like a muppet talking in French. IS that right???

[crfriend]

The jist of it was that the the Quebecoise accent sounds a little like a muppet talking in French. IS that right???

That was likely a bit of a jibe at the Quebecois.

The two dialects have very definitely diverged -- and quite strongly. I had a couple of years of French in school (which I never really mastered, but which gave me all sorts of insights into how languages other than English work and are constructed) and had the acquaintance of a few folks who spoke Quebecoise and the two were decidedly dissimilar. Quite likely, European French had to stay somewhat more "current" than was required for the Quebecois as the latter until reasonably recently were still primarily in "agrarian mode" and languages don't evolve as rapidly in such settings as there is no need for them to; France, on the other hand, "went tech" reasonably early and that forced changes upon the language, some of which were entirely unwelcome and remain so to this day, hence the Academy dedicated to the preservation and purity of the French language -- in France (Nobody else has such a thing, I believe.).

In any event, both "languages" (in the same vein as UK English and US English have effectively diverged) work in the paradigm they're required to, and that's what matters. The two "sides" potting at one another is silly.

[Couya]

Some say the Quebecois still speak as their ancestors did when they left France centuries ago. I think there is little chance of our ever verifying that theory, since no recordings were made centuries ago. I had difficulties understanding the English of North Carolinians when I was there, but generally managed to say yes or no at the right moments. In Quebec, however, at times, I had no idea what was being discussed. Country folk accentuate certain syllables and elide others, turn their Ds and Ts into fricative Z or TH, mumble and make allusions that only the locals can understand. The R is reminiscent of the US R, and there is no sign of the rolled R that was usual in most of rural France. Tv newscasts sound more like standard French, and with our hosts, who had been through university, there was no problem in mutual understanding, though they too did sometimes use words that are not used/no longer current in France.

Thanks to Hollywood, the Brits have no problem with US English, but that is not so true for the French hearing the Quebecois.

Martin

[Skirtguy992]

Fact: the actual dialect in Quebec is the Old Norman dialect.
Also Fact, during WW 2 when French Canadian soldiers fought at Normandy, the people of Normandy were amazed to hear their old mother tongue spoken by these Canadians.
FWIW, the true Cajun French spoken in Louisiana isn't far off since the original Cajuns were ousted from Acadia which is now Nova Scotia.

[Sylvain]

Some say the Quebecois still speak as their ancestors did when they left France centuries ago.

We kept some old words and a some elements of the old pre-Revolution pronunciation, but we've been in contact with France more and more since WWII, and a lot a these things disappeared. Also don't forget that all technical words arrived here in English handbooks...