French Genealogical Word List

This list contains French words with their English translations. The words included here are those you are likely to find in genealogical sources. If the word you are looking for is not on this list, please consult a French-English dictionary. (See the "Additional Resources" section below.)

The French language is a Romance language derived from Latin. Although English is a Germanic language, it has many words of Latin and French derivation. Thus, many French words are similar to words in English but often have different meanings.

French is spoken in France; Quebec and other areas of Canada; Luxembourg; southern Belgium; southwestern Switzerland; northern and central Africa; some islands in the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Caribbean Sea; southeast Asia; and other areas formerly colonized or influenced by the French. Between about 1800 and 1812, French was also used in records of the Rhineland area of Germany, northern Belgium, and the Netherlands. In addition, French is found in some early records of Louisiana and a few other places in the United States. Since about 1680, the grammar, if not the spelling, of official written French has been fairly well standardized throughout the world, even though there are many different forms of spoken French.

Language Characteristics
French words for persons, places, and things (nouns) are classified as masculine or feminine. Generally, adjectives used to describe feminine words end with e.

"Le" (masculine form of "the") is used with masculine words. "La" (feminine form of "the") is used with feminine words. But "l’" is used with either if the word begins with a vowel. For example, the word "enfant" means "child" or "infant," either masculine or feminine. But "l’enfant est né" ("the child is born") is used with a male child, and "l’enfant est née" with a female child.

Variant Forms of Words In French, as in English, the forms of some words will vary according to how they are used in a sentence. Who/whose/whom or marry/marries/married are examples of words in English with variant forms. This word list gives the standard form of each French word. As you read French records, you will need to be aware that some words vary with usage.

Plural forms of French words are usually created by adding -s or -x to the singular word. Thus "frère" becomes "frères," and "beau" becomes "beaux." The plural of "beau-frère" ("brother-in-law") is "beaux-frères" ("brothers-in-law").

In French there are five diacritical (accent) marks. These are placed over vowels or under the letter -c- to indicate a change in pronunciation. The following diacritical marks are used in French: à, â, é, è, ê, ë, î, ï, ô, ö, û, ù and ç. The -ç- is pronounced as an -s-. These diacritical marks do not affect alphabetical order.

Spelling Spelling rules were not fixed in earlier centuries. In French the following spelling variations are common:

Variation Example
-bv- used for -v-: "février" spelled "febvrier" -c- used for -ss-: "aussi" spelled "auci" -ct- used for -t-: "faites" spelled "faictes" -es- used for -é-: "témoins" spelled "tesmoins" -i- used for -j-: "jour" spelled "iour" -o- used for -ou-: "tournier" spelled "tornier" -os- used for -ô-: "nôtre" spelled "nostre" -sç- used for -s-: "savoir" spelled "sçavoir" -t- used for -tt-: "cette" spelled "cete" -y- used for -i-: "hier" spelled "hyer" -y- used for -ill-: "filleul" spelled "fyeul" -z- used for -s-: "baptisé" spelled "baptizé"

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Additional French Language Resources
This word list includes only words most commonly found in genealogical sources. For further help, consult a French-English dictionary. You can obtain a French-English dictionary at most public libraries and through many bookstores.

Several French-English dictionaries are available at the Family History Library. These are in the European collection. Their call numbers begin with.

The following dictionary is available on microfilm for use in Family History Centers:

A. Spiers. The Standard Pronouncing Dictionary of the French and English Languages. New York, NY, USA: Appleton, 1900. (Family History Library book, film item 4.)

Additional dictionaries are listed in the Subject search of the FamilySearch Catalog under FRENCH LANGUAGE—DICTIONARIES.

A helpful guide for reading genealogical records written in French is:

French Records Extraction. Salt Lake City, Utah, USA: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, n.d. (Family History Library fiche .) In addition to being a glossary of names and genealogical words, this guide includes examples of French documents and instructions in reading the handwriting.


 * BYU Script French Tutorials

Key Words
To find and use specific types of French records, you will need to know some key words in French. This section gives key genealogical terms in English and the French words with the same or similar meanings.

For example, in the first column you will find the English word marriage. In the second column you will find French words with meanings such as marry, marriage, wedding, wedlock, unite, legitimate, joined, and other words used in French records to indicate marriage.

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General Word List
This general word list includes words commonly seen in genealogical sources. Numbers, months, and days of the week are listed both here and in separate sections that follow this list. Words with the same spelling and meaning in English and French, such as "confirmation" or "date," are not included in this list.

In this list, optional versions of French words or variable endings are given in parentheses. A few phrases are listed under the key word, not necessarily the first word. Words in parentheses in the English column clarify the definition. Feminine or masculine meanings of French words are indicated by (f.) or (m.).

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A
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B
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C
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D
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E
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F
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G
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H
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I
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J
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K
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L
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M
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N
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O
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P
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Q
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R
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S
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T
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U
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V
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Numbers
In some genealogical sources, numbers are written out. This is especially true with dates. The following list gives the cardinal (1, 2, 3) and the ordinal (1st, 2nd, 3rd) versions of each number. Dates are usually written in ordinal form. Ordinal numbers are made by adding ième to the cardinal form of a number. If the number ends in an e, drop the e before adding ième.

From 60 to 99, the French count by twenties rather than by tens. Thus, 70 in French is sixty-ten, and 71 is sixty-eleven. The number 80 is four-twenties; 81 is four-twenties-one; 91 is four-twenties-eleven; and so on through 99, which is four-twenties-nineteen. In some areas, however, you will see the older style of 70 (septante), 80 (octante or huitante), and 90 (nonante).

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Dates and Time
In French records, dates are often written out. For example:

Le vingt-trois mars mil sept cent soixante dix-neuf [on the twenty-third day of March, in the year one thousand seven hundred sixty and nineteen (1779)]

To understand French dates, use the following lists as well as the preceding “Numbers” section.

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Months
During the years 1792 to 1806, the French used a unique calendar that related to the founding of the French Republic. It included the following months:

vendémiaire, brumaire, frimaire, nivôse, pluviôse, ventôse, germinal, floréal, prairial, messidor, thermidor, fructidor.

These month names cannot be translated because they do not correspond to the months we know as January to December. See the French Republican Calendar.

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Days of the Week
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Times of the Day
In French birth and death records, the registrar often indicated the exact time of day when the birth or death occurred. This is usually written out.

France French Genealogical Word List France Paper publication: Second edition 1997. English approval: 4/97.

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