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Quebec Culture Blog 
Hi Quebec Culture Blog- I love your posts! I’m learning more about Quebecois culture ahead of my trip to Quebec this summer. Here is an interview I did with a Quebecois folk group called “Le Vent Du Nord” that you might find interesting: https://culturallycuriousblog.wordpress.com/2015/03/04/un-interview-avec-le-vent-du-nord/. Thanks!
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Hey there Matt… thanks for the comment bud! You’re going to have an amazing time this summer – Québec definately comes alive in a whole other way once the snow is gone. You did a great job with the interview in your link… Félicitations ! Brad.
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Hi, can people link to your website on their websites? 🙂 Can you please let us know? Thank you.
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Hi Leslie, That’s nice of you to ask… Absolutely no problem. I just looked at your website… it looks very nice 🙂
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Does anyone know why we don’t have any French-Language Canadian TV channels available on cable or satellite TV in the U.S.? Is there a law forbidding Canadian TV channels on American cable or satellite TV? I have Verizon and the only French channel offered is TV5. But for other languages, there is often more than one channel offered. Even Italian has 2 channels available on Verizon. But for our next door neighbor Canada, there are no channels offered, in English or French. So I have to wonder if there is some law preventing this? It seems unfair since you can get all the US channels on Canadian TV and Satellite. And if there is a law about U.S. programs shown in Canadian TV, why are French language channels restricted, since they no longer broadcast any American programs.
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Hi Ron. That’s an interesting question. It may be a question of supply and demand (ie: would the level of demand be great enough for US cable providers to pay the high costs of devoting a very expensive and sought after cable channel devoted to Canadian French television?). Assuming cable providers expect a large return on investment to defray the significant costs of a devoted channel in a highly competitive environment, they may believe the market simply does not exist in the US compared to Italian or Spanish channels (where many people still speak such languages at home in the US). Just a guess, but something you could always ask of your cable provider, and see what explanation they provide.
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There are a lot of francophone Canadians that spend the winter in Florida, for example, and many others are scattered all around the U.S. So I think there would be a market for additional French channels – or even some English channels – from Canada. My provider, Verizon, provides multiple “international” channels (as premiums) in many languages – not just Spanish and Chinese. It just seems weird that we don’t have a single Canadian channel of any kind on our cable or satellite services. I have to wonder if there is some restriction – maybe something to do with the old days when CBC and CTV broadcast a lot of American TV series? But why the restriction on french-language TV from Canada too? I’ve gotten no replies from Verizon on this subject. It is next to impossible to speak to real live person at Verizon, unless it is tech support from India. And no one replied to my questions on their blog. So maybe you can ask someone on your end, why there is no Canadian TV “allowed” on U.S. cable? I don’t think it is just a perceived “lack of demand”.
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Wow! What a ton of work! What a great post! I can’t wait to read the entire series!
-jacques
( https://www.facebook.com/ToutCanadien )
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Great channel!
What about the French language in Welland, ON?
I would also be interested to see how you classify French dialects in New England.
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Welland French Pride!!!!
Hello,
You blog is super fascinating!
I’ve been watching and reading “Our 32 accents” [Series: Ontario], and Welland is missing from the list.
French speaking Welland is unique…
Welland has the highest French speaking population, in Southern Ontario. According to the 2011 census, French speakers represented 23.3% of Welland’s total population, surpassed only by Sudbury and Cornwall as a percent of total population. Welland is one of only three communities in southern Ontario, as a percentage of the community’s population, that exceeds the provincial average of 4.8%.
In the beginning…
In 1915, the first French families began to arrive in Welland, from Quebec, and an area known as Frenchtown began to develop. During WWI, more French speaking families came to Welland from Quebec and they were joined by Acadian French speakers from New Brunswick. These people were drawn to the job opportunities provided by industrial growth, in the area. The first French language school in Welland was opened in the 1920’s. Ecole Secondaire Confederation, established in Welland, in 1968, was the first French language secondary public school in Ontario.
Accent…
Due to the influence from two different dialects of French, Welland French speakers have a particularly unique accent, with Acadian and Quebec influences. Adding another dimension to Welland’s unique French accent is, the vast majority of French speakers in Welland are bi-lingual, French/English and Franglais is very common (somewhat similar to Chiac). The very elderly are typically the only remaining mono-lingual French speakers, in Welland.
The Welland/Toronto French accent connection…
In “Our 32 accents” [Series: Ontario], “is this the TORONTO French Accent?” section, you feature a video of a theatre troop, as an example of the Toronto French accent. The actor featured in the video, Pierre Simpson, is actually from Welland (he was my date to prom ). So when you’re referring to the possibility of a standardized Toronto French accent, you’re actually hearing the Welland French accent, in the example video.
Notable Welland frenchies…
• Paul Bissonnette – colour commentator and former NHL hockey player
• Cal Clutterbuck – New York Islanders player
• Daniel Paille – Boston Bruins hockey player
A good read…
Aspects de l’histoire des Franco-Ontariens du Centre et du Sud-Ouest, 1970-2000
Click to access 1039293ar.pdf
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Hi there! I love your image of Canada with the francophone flags of the different regions. Would I be able to get permission to have a student paint it on the wall of my French/Social Studies 8 classroom in Truro, Nova Scotia? Thanks!
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Hi Chris. No problem at all. Would love to see a pic of it when it’s completed (quebeccultureblog@hotmail.com). All the best 🙂
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The video about all the different Canadian accents sparked some great conversations in my grade 11 class this year! I also came here about the flags image… Do you have a high-res version you would be willing to share? I’m not as ambitious as Chris above, but was hoping I could make a poster.
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Hi Sarah, I only made it with the same resolution as the one in the blog, unfortuantely. But feel free to use it if you’d like 🙂
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Dear Brad,
I am trying to be a bilingual poet, and I have written an article about my efforts. I have not had luck so far trying to get a magazine or website to publish it, My motive is anglophone-francophone friendship. I am not expecting to be paid for my article. Does this interest you at all? I don’t know if you are still producing your blog; but, if you aren’t, could you perhaps suggest any other places I might contact about the publication or posting of an article like mine? Thank you, in any case.
Regards,
Greg Skala
Nanaimo, BC
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Hi Greg, I’m not maintaining / updating the blog anymore. I’m not sure who may be interested in accepting such poems. I’m wondering if the Department of Heritage, the Governor General’s office, of the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadiennes may be able to point you in the direction you seek. They usually have contact info on their websites. 🙂
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