# Langue de Shakespeare, langue de Molière... others? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 28, 2001, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099 "2001-07-28T18:56:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2001, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/1 "2001-07-28T18:56:41Z")
I’ve lately become enamoured of a French expression “la langue de …” followed by the name of a famous author, to denote a particular language. Are there other authors who are the proverbial avatars of various other languages? Here are the ones I’ve collected so far: la langue de Molière: French. la langue de Shakespeare: English. la langue de Goethe: German. la langue de Cervantes: Spanish. These are the only ones I’ve heard or read in actual usage. I’m not interested in possible ones, but only ones that are in actual usage. Can you help? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2001, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/2 "2001-07-28T19:18:46Z")
la langue de Kenny: Mrrglblvh ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2001, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/3 "2001-07-28T21:17:44Z")
A Google search turns up a lot of references to **la langue de Dante** and quite a few references to **la langue de Cicéron**. The trouble is that I can’t tell if they’re referring to the Italian and Latin languages _per se_ or to those authors’ particular styles when writing in those languages. ---
**Author:** ![Dragonblink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Dragonblink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragonblink)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/4 "2001-07-29T03:56:22Z")
I’ve heard Latin referred to in English as “the language of Cicero,” so that may be a reference to Latin itself, as a whole. I’ve also heard “la langue de Villon,” though I think perhaps François Villon (one of my favorite poets) isn’t as well known in the English speaking world as Molière. Dragonblink the Language Major ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/5 "2001-07-29T04:57:55Z")
Scots: The language of Robbie Burns. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/6 "2001-07-29T06:15:16Z")
Esperanto: the language of [Julio] Baghy? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/7 "2001-07-29T19:15:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bibliophage \* > \*\*A Google search turns up a lot of references to **la langue de Dante** and quite a few references to **la langue de Cicéron**. The trouble is that I can’t tell if they’re referring to the Italian and Latin languages _per se_ or to those authors’ particular styles when writing in those languages. \*\* Yes they do refer to Italian and Latin. Another addition is _la langue d’Homère_, for Classic Greek. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2001, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/8 "2001-08-20T02:18:59Z")
Binary, the language of moisture vaporators. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2001, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/9 "2001-08-20T06:57:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sunspace \* > \*\*Esperanto: the language of [Julio] Baghy? 🙂 \*\* La lingvo de Zamenhof, kompreneble! (A usage which I saw sanctified yesterday in _Le Devoir_.) ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2001, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/10 "2001-08-21T03:29:46Z")
\ Mi pensis pri verkistoju, kiuj enesperanta verkadis, sed forgesis, ke Zamenhof mem tradukis kaj kreis multajn aferojn… I was thinking of authors who wrote in Esperanto, but forgot that Zamenhof created and translated much himself… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2001, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/langue-de-shakespeare-langue-de-moliere-others/74099/11 "2001-08-21T03:34:28Z")
la langue de Homer: D’oh! [Annoyed grunt.]