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how to tell names of countries in the French language

How to tell the names of countries in the  French language

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D'ou viens-tu or Where are you from, here is a question where you will need to tell about your country in French. You will also be talking about countries in your geography class or while using a world map. So, learning the names of countries will get you ready to have a successful conversation.

In this lesson, you will learn the names of some common countries with their articles and  English translation. 

 

1. A country and a continent in French

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Before making a list of countries in the French language, we will learn first the word for a country and a continent in French.

A country is translated in French as Un pays while a continent is exactly spelled the same way in French but pronounced differently: Un continent.

Countries and continents are part of the world (le monde) or the earth (la terre).

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2. French articles and countries

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It is relatively easy in most cases to tell the names of countries in French as they look alike in English. For instance, Italie stands for Italy, Australie for Australia.  The only difference with English is that countries are generally used with the definite articles le, la, les or l'.  

To use the right article, you need to know the gender of the country, whether it is feminine or masculine. Example: Le Mexique, la France, Les États-Unis, l'Espagne.

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The article l' is used in front of a country starting with a vowel-like with Espagne, Italie, ...

Countries in French Europe

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3. List of common countries in French

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This is not a full list  of countries. However you can find most of the continents: European countries, asian, african, ...

I have purposely chosen to list some common countries around the globe. The presence of  letter "m" means it is a masculine country and "f" is for feminine.

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      English    =>   French

  • Algeria => l'Algérie (f)

  • Argentina => l'Argentine (f)

  • Australia => l'Australie (f)

  • Austria => l'Autriche (f)

  • Bahamas => les Bahamas

  • Belgium => la Belgique

  • Benin => le Bénin

  • Brazil => le Brésil

  • Burkina Faso => le Burkina Faso

  • Burma => la Birmanie

  • Burundi => le Burundi

  • Cambodia => le Cambodge

  • Cameroon => le Cameroun

  • Canada => le Canada

  • Chad => le Tchad

  • Chile => le Chili

  • China => la Chine

  • Congo => le Congo

  • Côte d'Ivoire => la Côte d'Ivoire

  • Croatia => la Croatie

  • Czech Republic => la République tchèque

  • Denmark => le Danemark

  • Egypt => l'Égypte (f)

  • England => l'Angleterre (f)

  • Ethiopia => l'Éthiopie (f)

  • France => la France

  • Germany => l'Allemagne (f)

  • Ghana => le Ghana

  • Greece => la Grèce

  • Haiti => Haïti

  • India => l'Inde (f)

  • Indonesia => l'Indonésie (f)

  • Iran => l'Iran (m)

  • Ireland => l'Irlande (f)

  • Italy => l'Italie (f)

  • Jamaica => la Jamaïque

  • Japan => le Japon

  • Kenya => le Kenya

  • Laos => le Laos

  • Lebanon => le Liban

  • Luxembourg => le Luxembourg

  • Madagascar => Madagascar

  • Malaysia => la Malaisie

  • Mexico => le Mexique

  • Morocco => le Maroc

  • Mozambique => le Mozambique

  • Netherlands => les Pays-Bas

  • Niger => le Niger

  • Nigeria => le Nigéria

  • North Korea => la Corée du Nord

  • Norway => la Norvège

  • Pakistan => le Pakistan

  • Philippines => les Philippines 

  • Poland => la Pologne

  • Portugal => le Portugal

  • Russia => la Russie

  • Rwanda => le Rwanda

  • Saudi Arabia => l'Arabie saoudite (f)

  • Scotland => l'Écosse (f)

  • Senegal => le Sénégal

  • Singapore => Singapour

  • South Africa => l'Afrique du Sud (f)

  • South Korea => la Corée du Sud

  • Spain => l'Espagne (f)

  • Sri Lanka => le Sri Lanka

  • Sudan => le Soudan

  • Sweden => la Suède

  • Switzerland => la Suisse

  • Syria => la Syrie

  • Tanzania => la Tanzanie

  • Thailand => la Thaïlande

  • Togo => le Togo

  • Tunisia => la Tunisie

  • Turkey => la Turquie

  • United Arab Emirates => les Émirats arabes unis

  • United Kingdom => le Royaume-Uni

  • United States of America => les États-Unis 

  • Vietnam => le Viêtnam

  • Wales => le pays de Galles

  • Zimbabwe => le Zimbabwe

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4. Learn more on Countries names with videos

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