Franco…qui ? Franco…quoi ? Considérations lexicales au niveau débutant ou quelques questions provocantes sans réponses définitives

Abstract

Franco...who? Franco...what? Lexical considerations at beginner level or some provocative questions without definitive answers “Francophones”, “francographes”, “francophiles”, “francophobes”... What an extraordinary word-formation richness! Not to mention similar words, more complicated and difficult to translate : “francology” (scientific discipline), “francité” (“frenchness”), “francogène” (“of francophone origin”). Although they all contain the same prefix “franco-”, all these concepts introduce a sense of inconsistency: for some of them refer to the world of francophony, while others are closely related only to France or its inhabitants. Why? Is it correct and fair? What good/bad comes from this confusion? This is an issue that the author ponders on, without giving obvious answers, but rather provoking to pose further disturbing questions about the identity of contemporary and future francophony.