Francophone Countries, Capitals

February 28, 2022

Ever wonder which countries use French as their official language? Did you know there are over 25 Francophone countries? North America – 1, The Caribbean – 1, Europe – 5, and Africa – 21, Australia – 1.

This list only includes countries that use French as one of their official languages, however there are many other countries where French is spoken.

Francophone Countries, Capitals

France – Paris (La France)
Belgium – Brussels (La Belgique, Bruxelles)
Luxembourg – Luxembourg (Le Luxembourg)
Switzerland – Berne (La Suisse)
Monaco – Monaco (no article because it’s a principality – long name is La principauté de Monaco)
Canada – Ottowa (Le Canada)
Haiti – Port-au-Prince (Haïti) (no article because it’s an island)
Senegal – Dakar (Le Sénégal)
Mali – Bamako (Le Mali)
Niger– Niamey (Le Niger)
Guinea – Conakry (La Guinée)
Ivory Coast – Yamoussoukro (La Côte d’Ivoire)
Burkina Faso – Ougadougou (love this name – great for using in TPR stories) pronounced wah-gah-doo-goo (Le Burkina Faso
Togo – Lomé (Le Togo)
Benin – Porto Novo/Cotonou (Le Bénin)
Chad – N’Djamena (Le Tchad)
Cameroon – Yaoundé (Le Cameroun)
Central African Republic – Bangui (La République centrafricaine)
Equatorial Guinea – Malabo (La Guinée équatoriale)
Gabon – Libreville (Le Gabon)
Congo – Brazzaville (Le Congo)
Democratic Republic of the Congo – Kinshasa (La République démocratique du Congo – La RDC)
Djibouti – Djibouti (La République de Djibouti)
Rwanda – Kigali (Le Rwanda)
Burundi – Bujumbura (Le Burundi)
Seychelles – Victoria (Les Seychelles)
Comoros – Moroni (Les Comores)
Madagascar – Antanarivo (No article because it’s an island)
Vanuatu – Port Vila (Le Vanuatu)

* Most countries that are islands don’t use the articles le, la, les. Four islands do use them: La Barbade, La Dominique, La Grenade, and La Jamaïque.

North America + The Caribbean

Canada – Ottowa
Haiti – Port-au-Prince

Europe

France – Paris
Belgium – Brussels
Luxembourg – Luxembourg
Switzerland – Berne
Monaco – Monaco

Continental Africa

Senegal – Dakar
Mali – Bamako
Niger– Niamey
Guinea – Conakry
Ivory Coast – Yamoussoukro
Burkina Faso – Ougadougou (love this name – great for using in TPR stories) pronounced wah-gah-doo-goo
Togo – Lomé
Benin – Porto Novo/Cotonou
Chad – N’Djamena
Cameroon – Yaoundé
Central African Republic – Bangui
Equatorial Guinea – Malabo
Gabon – Libreville
Congo – Brazzaville
Democratic Republic of the Congo – Kinshasa
Djibouti – Djibouti
Rwanda – Kigali
Burundi – Bujumbura

Islands off the Coast of Africa

Seychelles – Victoria
Comoros – Moroni
Madagascar – Antanarivo

Australia

Vanuatu – Port Vila

P.S. If you like these photos and want more, check out this colorful PowerPoint for 30 French speaking countries.

French Videos

Learning the French speaking countries is a great class activity however, my favorite way to teach culture is through 101 Francophone Video Clips.

Francophone culture comes alive when you travel the globe virtually with your students. Short video clips open their eyes to show them what it’s like to live in other parts of the world. Not surprisingly, after watching 1 video, my students were hooked, so we started Les voyages de vendredi.

Love how these introduce a variety of French accents and that students learn different perspectives and ways of living. Great for all ages and levels of language learners.

Start immersing your students in Francophone culture right now with 7 free video clips for France and Canada, along with flags, colorful photos, and fun facts. Grab them now in my Free Resource Library!

JOIN THE FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY!

Through these videos, students:

Meet the Royal Drummers of Burundi

Learn what not to do when visiting France

Drive a car in the Grand Prix in Monaco

Listen to a Moroccan rap video

Learn how a drum is made in Guinea

See how women recycle plastic bags in Burkina Faso

Visit gorillas in Cameroon

Catch the giant tigerfish in the Congo

Check out 101 French speaking countries videos.

Tricks for Remembering Francophone Countries

Did you know the brain can only usually remember 8 items at a time? Use these handy pneumonic devices to remember them all. If you’re a teacher, challenge students to create their own pneumonic devices.

Teaching Nationalities

Since learning nationalities can be tricky, I created this free helpful nationality partner sheet. Students work with a variety of partners throughout the year and learn nationalities. Grab it with the instructions in my Free Resource Library.