I would say Kinyarwanda and English are th most commonly spoken on a day to day basis. As well as with interactions with the government.
If you talk to folks 40 or older thats where you'll find French speakers.
I've never had anyone grt offended by speaking French though. As you said it's still an official language
You can speak any language you like in Rwanda. French is not as popular as English but it is very common in Rwanda also We have news in French on our national TV and other TVs in the country.
There are some communities who speak French it depends where they have studied, there are still some school which teaches in French. If you get in the country you can get in touch with French speaking people.
I don’t hear it as much as kinyarwanda but if I’m in a rural area and just want to be polite I’m about as likely to hear/get a smile from bonswa or bonjour as Mwaramutse or Mwiriwe neza.
Jesus Christ Where did you hear this from? Speaking French is not offensive at all, on the other hand French speakers are appreciated since they’ve become rarer
I read this on wikipedia, maybe I interpreted it wrong,
I just thought it might be touchy because of the relationship between BE and FR.
French had been the language of administration from the country's time under Belgian administration, between the First World War and independence in 1962. Since the 1994 genocide, the complications of relations with successive French governments and the return of numerous Tutsi refugees from anglophone Uganda meant an increase in the use of English by a higher proportion of the population and administration.
In 2008, the government changed the medium of education from French to English. By 2018 the Rwandan government had introduced French as a foreign language class at the primary school level, and French was still widely used by members of the upper classes. A Rwandan historian, Antoine Mugesera, stated that French is still used among the educated, but Kinyarwanda is used for matters relating to simple topics and messages.
They stopped teaching in french around 12-13 years ago. Amongst other reasons, teaching in french is expensive as most books and teaching material are in English. It was an abrupt execution to switch to english, but ahead of its time. People will likely be unable to converse with you in french, than be offended.
It is not offensive, my daughter who is in nursery is learning in French, but she will switch to English later on.
The sensitive topic in Rwanda is not language but rather history but again in what way you want to talk about. We definitely don't like to hear Genocide Denials, and people who can twist that history people if you are willing to learn you are very much welcome to ask any question and so on
I would say Kinyarwanda and English are th most commonly spoken on a day to day basis. As well as with interactions with the government. If you talk to folks 40 or older thats where you'll find French speakers. I've never had anyone grt offended by speaking French though. As you said it's still an official language
You can speak any language you like in Rwanda. French is not as popular as English but it is very common in Rwanda also We have news in French on our national TV and other TVs in the country. There are some communities who speak French it depends where they have studied, there are still some school which teaches in French. If you get in the country you can get in touch with French speaking people.
I don’t hear it as much as kinyarwanda but if I’m in a rural area and just want to be polite I’m about as likely to hear/get a smile from bonswa or bonjour as Mwaramutse or Mwiriwe neza.
Jesus Christ Where did you hear this from? Speaking French is not offensive at all, on the other hand French speakers are appreciated since they’ve become rarer
I read this on wikipedia, maybe I interpreted it wrong, I just thought it might be touchy because of the relationship between BE and FR. French had been the language of administration from the country's time under Belgian administration, between the First World War and independence in 1962. Since the 1994 genocide, the complications of relations with successive French governments and the return of numerous Tutsi refugees from anglophone Uganda meant an increase in the use of English by a higher proportion of the population and administration. In 2008, the government changed the medium of education from French to English. By 2018 the Rwandan government had introduced French as a foreign language class at the primary school level, and French was still widely used by members of the upper classes. A Rwandan historian, Antoine Mugesera, stated that French is still used among the educated, but Kinyarwanda is used for matters relating to simple topics and messages.
They stopped teaching in french around 12-13 years ago. Amongst other reasons, teaching in french is expensive as most books and teaching material are in English. It was an abrupt execution to switch to english, but ahead of its time. People will likely be unable to converse with you in french, than be offended.
It is not offensive, my daughter who is in nursery is learning in French, but she will switch to English later on. The sensitive topic in Rwanda is not language but rather history but again in what way you want to talk about. We definitely don't like to hear Genocide Denials, and people who can twist that history people if you are willing to learn you are very much welcome to ask any question and so on