Quebec Languages

Most materials used in French Canadian research are written in French. However, you do not need to speak or read French to do research. You just need to know some key numbers, words, and phrases to understand the French Canadian records.

You may find other languages in the records of Québec. These include English and Latin. Latin is sometimes found in very early Roman Catholic parish registers. English was often used in the eastern townships and the Ottawa River valley. In 1850 about a quarter of the population of Québec spoke English.

French grammar and customs may affect the way names appear in genealogical records. For example, the names of your ancestor may vary from record to record in French. For help in understanding name variations, see the "Names, Personal" section of this outline.

Language Aids
The Family History Library has published a French Word List (34060) and a Latin Word List (34077). The lists contain words often found in genealogical research with their English translation.

The Family History Library also has a guide for researchers who do not speak French but must write to Québec or France to request genealogical records:

French Letter-Writing Guide (34059)Salt Lake City, Utah, USA: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1994. (FHL book 929.1 F21Lw; fiche 6117799.) It includes a list of sentences you would use in a letter about genealogical records and a French translation of sentences.

The following books and English-French dictionaries can also help you in your research. You can find these and similar materials at many research libraries.

French Records Extraction. Salt Lake City, Utah, USA: Genealogical Society of Utah, [198-?]. (FHL book 944 D27f; fiche 6068523.) Text in English. Shows examples of French civil records, parish records, and handwriting. Has list of personal names and translations of common words used in the records.

New Cassell's French Dictionary: French-English, English-French. New York, NY, USA: Funk &amp; Wagnalls, 1970. (FHL book 443.21 C272.)

Boudreau, Dennis M. Beginning Franco-American Genealogy. Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA: American-French Genealogical Society, 1986. (FHL book 973 D27bo.) See the "For Further Reading" section near the end of this outline for a description.

Additional language aids are listed in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under FRANCE - LANGUAGE AND LANGUAGES or in the Subject Search under FRENCH LANGUAGE - DICTIONARIES.

Key Words
With a knowledge of the basic words, most English-speaking persons can read many of the French Canadian records used for genealogical research. These are some of the most common words and abbreviations in French Canadian church records, vital records, and genealogical collections:

French English

 * à in, at, to
 * acte record
 * an year
 * année year
 * à Québec in, to the city of Québec
 * au Québec in, to the province of Québec
 * b baptized, christened
 * baptême baptism, christening
 * baptisé baptized, christened (masculine)
 * baptisée baptized, christened (feminine)
 * de of, from


 * de Québec of the city of Québec
 * du Québec of the province of Québec
 * def. deceased
 * deft deceased
 * défunt deceased (masculine)
 * défunte deceased (feminine)
 * enfant child
 * épouse wife
 * époux husband
 * et and
 * femme wife
 * feu(e) late, deceased


 * fille daughter
 * fils son
 * illégitime illegitimate
 * inconnu(e) unknown, surname not known
 * m marriage
 * mari husband
 * mariage marriage
 * marié husband
 * marieé wife
 * mois month
 * n born
 * naissance birth
 * né born (masculine)


 * née born (feminine)
 * père father
 * répertoire index
 * s burial
 * Saint Saint (masculine)
 * Sainte Saint (feminine)
 * sépulture burial
 * St Saint (masculine)
 * Ste Saint (feminine)
 * ve widow
 * veuf widower
 * veuve widow
 * vf widower
 * vve widow