"Onion", "picnic" Switzerland "rectifies" French spelling

This is news that will please schoolchildren.Those for whom spelling and dictations are synonymous with nightmare.In the land of the Helvetians, it is now official: you can eat onions without "i", picnic without taking a line of union, and swimming in an island by removing your accent if the desire takes us.

Exit the circumflex accents, the unions of union and the dashes of the compound figures.French -speaking Switzerland adopts a "simplified" spelling.A choice that any French -speaking school can make, since 1990, the year of spelling reform.It is Michel Rocard, Prime Minister of François Mitterrand, who asks the Superior Council of the French language to offer spelling simplifications, to enhance the level of schoolchildren in French.These were to serve "a certain harmonization of some rules of French spelling", indicates Grevisse.

The French Academy approves these proposals.Among them, there is the removal of the circumflex accent on "I" and "U" (except for verbal forms and homophones as "ripe, fast"), the alignment of verbs in "-eler" and "-etter "on the model of" peel "and" buy "(except" throwing "and" call "), and the regularization of compound words.

Inclusive writing prohibited

In France, these modifications are in no way compulsory, but constitute a "change in the official standard".The French remain free to apply and teach the old.In Belgium, it is however compulsory.In French -speaking Switzerland, from 2023, she will be officially taught at school, without traditional spelling being prohibited.Professors are also invited to favor a "spicy" language, that is to say without gender distinction.Inclusive writing is however prohibited.

In time, Swiss daily newspaper, the psycholinguist Pascal Gygax, who officiates at the University of Friborg, analyzes this official adoption as a means of fighting against "a growing split between writing and oral that deserves to be questioned".According to him, "Swiss, Belgian and French students have less good language scores than in other countries, because they spend a lot of time trying to learn spelling rules that are not based on any logic.»»

Au total, 2400 mots ont subi un nettoyage de printemps: nénuphar devient «nénufar»», porte-monnaie, «portemonnaie»» et mille-pattes, «millepattes»».