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News Reimagined Toontown coming
- Thread starter DCBaker
- Start date
waltography
Well-Known Member
I think someone in the MMRR thread (was it @Inspired Figment?) was disappointed at the lack of House of Mouse nods in Toontown. Well...
Inspired Figment
Well-Known Member
FINALLY!!! SO glad to see!! 
Thank you Disney. You’ve done right!
Thank you Disney. You’ve done right!
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TP2000
Well-Known Member
Why is this sign in English, French and Spanish?
Or, more pointedly, why is it in French? If they want to include local OC languages other than English, why isn't it in Vietnamese?
There is no notable French community in SoCal that I know of. There's a lot of Portuguese speakers in Chino, a gazillion Koreans all over, and Vietnamese in OC. But French speakers? The mind boggles at what TDA intern approved that.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
French translations are common in Los Angeles alone. I’ve run into French speakers various times. Believe it or not, there are Francophones that live in and/or visit Southern California.
No big deal.
No big deal.
Disney Analyst
Well-Known Member
I didn’t even notice that there was French on a sign at Disneyland. How neat!
TP2000
Well-Known Member
Nope. A relative handful of Francophones may exist in any city of 10 Million, but they are still a tiny minority.
Don't get me wrong, I have the Julia Child cookbooks and I have a full set of 7-piece Pillivuyt Coupe porcelain place settings I use for my entertaining and I can make a mean Mousse au Chocolat for a dessert party when called upon (I hand whip the egg whites and fold them in carefully in thirds which is half the battle against deflation, and I always use excellent chocolate like 63% Guittard, and I always make fresh whipped cream just prior to table presentation). But in a state of 39 Million people, you're going to be able to find only a few French speakers. And certainly very few in comparison to all the other many languages spoken in California, that are all far more common than French.
French is apparently the 14th most common language spoken in the home in California.
Most Common Languages Spoken by Californians:
1. English (Duh)
2. Spanish (Double Duh)
3. Chinese (Mandarin or Cantonese)
4. Tagalog
5. Vietnamese (especially in OC)
6. Korean
7. Persian
8. Hindi
9. Armenian (especially around Calabasas)
10. Arabic
11. Russian (not very fashionable any more)
12. Punjabi
13. Japanese
14. French
If a language is in 14th place in common usage, then why is it being used for a merchandise display at Disneyland? Why isn't it a more common language among the 3.3 Million Orange County residents near Disneyland, like Tagalog or Vietnamese?
Top Languages Spoken In California
California is the most linguistically diverse state in the US, let’s take a look at The Top Languages Spoken in California
www.milestoneloc.com
French language in the United States - Wikipedia
When I lived in OC, I had a few friends who were native Portuguese speakers who lived in Chino Hills. There's a big Portuguese community there, so I'm surprised it didn't rank higher. Although I guess Chino Hills isn't a big suburb in the grand scheme of things. But if Disneyland started putting signs up in Portuguese, I'd laugh at that too. And my friends from Chino Hills would say "Que diabos?!?"
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TP2000
Well-Known Member
I didn’t even notice that there was French on a sign at Disneyland. How neat!
I noticed immediately and started this topic within moments. Because I'm very cosmopolitan.
I suppose it would be neat if they built a Disneyland Quebec, sure. But in Southern California? It's very odd.
It's fascinating really. Is this a new thing? All signage at Disneyland will now be in English, Spanish and... French? And if so, why?
Less than 4% of the people on the planet Earth speak French, and only 0.65% of Americans speak French. Something doesn't add up here.
Geographical distribution of French speakers - Wikipedia
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Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
I never said they were a majority. I said they live in/visit Southern California.
So…yep.
Disneyland doesn’t only cater to locals from Orange County and Los Angeles. French is one of the most commonly-spoken languages in the world. It’s not weird to see French translations, even at Disneyland. We’ve got Francophones for neighbors. Additionally, they probably mass-produced signage and it is probably in French due to DLP.
We can be friends.
LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
I have to say that I too find the presence of French in Disneyland puzzling. Has it happened before?
Vegas Disney Fan
Well-Known Member
Why is this sign in English, French and Spanish?
Or, more pointedly, why is it in French? If they want to include local OC languages other than English, why isn't it in Vietnamese?
There is no notable French community in SoCal that I know of. There's a lot of Portuguese speakers in Chino, a gazillion Koreans all over, and Vietnamese in OC. But French speakers? The mind boggles at what TDA intern approved that.
I don’t think it’s a store sign, looks like a toy they’re selling.
Lots of Disney Merch (and merch in general everywhere in America) includes French.
Disney Analyst
Well-Known Member
You’re right, just took a look at MiceChat’s walk through video. That is printed directly on the box the toy comes in.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
As a Magnet collector I don’t like the trend of these huge flat magnets. I only have so much room on my fridge. Not trying to have Runaway Railway representing half of my refrigerator door. Wouldn’t they sell more if they made these smaller? Where are people putting these, their car?
LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
That makes much more sense. And looking again at the photo, I can't see how I missed it.
waltography
Well-Known Member
Isn't there a provision in Canada that items must be labeled in both English and French? I'd imagine that also includes other countries (maybe the EU?), so if Disney ever decided to sell these RCs on shopDisney in other countries that's one less requirement they have to worry about.
It's also the reason why tags on shirts and headbands and the like have gotten CVS receipt long. They're covering their bases when selling merchandise internationally.
mharrington
Well-Known Member
LittleBuford
Well-Known Member
That's different from including French in signage that's visible to everyone, which is what I thought we were dealing with here. That would indeed have been odd at Disneyland.Well, they do have guidemaps translated in French:
