Languages
- French (official language and the language of the élite), Lingala and Kituba (national languages and linguae francae among common people), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)
The majority of the population is concentrated along the railroad between Pointe-Noire and Brazzaville in the south where Kituba (a creole language based on Kikongo) is the primary language. Lingala is influential in the sparsely inhabited northern half of the country.
Read more about this topic: Demographics Of The Republic Of The Congo
Famous quotes containing the word languages:
“The less sophisticated of my forbears avoided foreigners at all costs, for the very good reason that, in their circles, speaking in tongues was commonly a prelude to snake handling. The more tolerant among us regarded foreign languages as a kind of speech impediment that could be overcome by willpower.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)
“It is time for dead languages to be quiet.”
—Natalie Clifford Barney (1876–1972)
“The trouble with foreign languages is, you have to think before your speak.”
—Swedish proverb, trans. by Verne Moberg.