Picard

Picard is a language closely related to French, and as such is one of the larger group ofRomance languages. It is spoken in two regions in the far north of France – Nord-Pas-de-Calaisand Picardy – and in parts of the Belgian region Wallonia (but is clearly distinct from the Walloon language).

Picard is known by several different names. Residents of Picardie call it picard; but in Nord-Pas-de-Calais its dialects are more commonly known as chti or chtimi, in and around the towns ofValenciennes and Lille as rouchi; or simply as patois by Northerners in general. Linguists group all of these under the name Picard. In general the variety spoken in Picardy is understood by speakers in Nord-Pas-de-Calais, and vice versa.

Picard is not taught in French schools (apart from a few one-off and isolated courses) and is generally only spoken among friends or family members. It has nevertheless been the object of university research in Lille and Amiens. Since people are nowadays able to move around France more easily than in past centuries, the different varieties of Picard are converging and becoming more similar. In its daily use, Picard is tending to lose its distinctive features and may be confused with regional French. At the same time, even though most Northerners can understand Picard today, fewer and fewer are able to speak it, and people who speak Picard as their first language are increasingly rare, particularly under age 50.

However, Picard is far from dead and constitutes a lively and large part of the daily life andfolklore of the region

The 2008 film "Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis", starring comedian Dany Boon deals with Ch'ti language and culture and the perceptions of the region by outsiders.