English is omnipresent in the Latin Quarter of Montreal, even though it was designated a “Francophonie district” this week by the administration of Valérie Plante.
What there is to know
- Commercial brands where English dominates abound in the Latin Quarter.
- The area was however designated a “Francophonie district” by Valérie Plante this week.
- Traders are outraged, but the majority of these brands are completely legal, according to a lawyer.
A quick tour of rue Saint-Denis and its surroundings on Thursday allowed The Press to note that a significant proportion of businesses in the sector – around twenty of them – have signs where English dominates.
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“We are being invaded,” denounces Jacques Boisseau in an interview, owner for 40 years of Café Cherrier, an institution in the sector. “French is in decline”, even in the Latin Quarter, in his opinion.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Éric Simard, owner of Librairie du Square
A little to the south, Éric Simard, of Librairie du Square, also sees things deteriorating. “I lived in Montreal in the 1990s, I left for 15 years and came back when I bought the bookstore. I saw that English had progressed,” he says, behind the counter of his business. “Before, it was a lot in the West, now it’s almost everywhere. »
Mr. Simard would like the rules surrounding display language to be more strictly applied. “It was rarely respected,” according to him. “They’ve been letting it go for a few years. That bothers me. »
The Press tried to contact the majority of merchants, without success.
Montreal is “a French-speaking city,” reiterates Plante
It was on Tuesday that the administration of Mayor Valérie Plante announced its intention to designate the Latin Quarter “district of the Francophonie” in order to highlight its historic role in the perpetuation of the French fact in the metropolis.
“The Latin Quarter is the Latin Quarter. It will not change its name, assured the mayor at a press conference at the time of the announcement. But we want to reaffirm the extent to which it contributes to the strong French-speaking identity of Montreal, both in terms of knowledge and culture, nightlife and major Quebec institutions. »
Since then, controversy has emerged over the advisability of associating the French-speaking world with a particular neighborhood, when Montreal as a whole is a French-speaking city.
Mme Plante, who reserved the French language issue within his executive committee, did not grant an interview to The Press.
“Respect for the Charter of the French Language in signage is the responsibility of the Office of the French Language. That said, our administration assumes its responsibility to take concrete actions to promote French throughout Montreal, which is a French-speaking city,” his office indicated in writing. “Compliance with the Office’s standards requires constant monitoring and we share the firm desire that all establishments comply with them. »
“In no case should these cases call into question the exceptional contribution of the flagship institutions of the Latin Quarter, which have contributed to promoting the Francophonie in Quebec and around the world,” he added.
The office of the Minister of the French Language, Jean-François Roberge, did not call back The Press.
Most signs would be legal
The majority of businesses identified by The Press appear at first glance to comply with current legislation regarding commercial signage, underlines Yann Canneva, lawyer and trademark agent at Langlois law firm.
“As long as we have a trademark that is recognized […] in a language other than French, it is an exception to the obligation to have displays all in French,” he explained in a telephone interview.
The law says, however, that a trademark in English (or another language) must be accompanied by a generic or descriptive name in its display, such as “restaurant”, “boutique” or other.
However, a new regulation must come into force in June 2025, requiring that a trademark in English be visually twice as small on signs as the French words that accompany it.
“There are none of your photos that respect the new version” of the law, assessed Me Canneva. But “there is still time”.