Editing French language (section)

== History ==
French developed from Vulgar Latin after the Roman conquest of Gaul. The language was shaped by local Gallo-Romance speech and by later Frankish influence after the collapse of Roman authority in western Europe.

Old French was used in northern France during the medieval period. The dialects of northern France were known as the ''langues d'oïl''. Over time, the speech of Paris and the surrounding Île-de-France region became the basis for standard French. The growth of royal administration, law, education, printing, and literature strengthened the use of French as a written and official language.

The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts of 1539 made French the language of royal legal and administrative records in France. This helped replace Latin in state administration and gave French a stronger official position within the French kingdom.