Local Language

Many people have asked me what language Swiss people speak. Official languages of the country are German (65% of the population), French (25%), Italian (10%) as well as a minority language Romansh and unofficially English which is used widely. So to sum it up: it’s an amalgam of languages. Many are polyglots with at least a good command of two languages or more.

With that said, Switzerland is largely operated by Cantons (districts or states in US terms), hence they determine the official language of their region. In Geneva, the official language is French. Hence I am no different than living in a Francophone region. The last time I took French is about 13 years ago in high school. I spent the last 2 months or so reviewing my French through various texts and podcasts but it’s not until you throw yourself into the environment that you get the grasp of it.

 It’s my 4^th day and I’m finally starting to comprehend and answer back in French without a wave of panic attacks going through my brain. Thank you to my meager knowledge of 4 years of high school French that's been slowly coming back to me. Also luckily I have R to the rescue who’s been my life saver when I am stuck on a French language issue.

In any case, I have a long way to go on my French. I can get by (although barely) on an everyday conversation level but when it comes to academics, all my years of grammar and reading and French have gone out of the window. Just a few days ago, I failed my French placement test for my university. Good thing all my classes will be in English so I won’t get kicked out of the program!