#International activity #Students #Organization of events

Days of Francophonie in PetrSU

04 April 2022

International Francophonie Day is a celebration for those who are in love with the French language and culture of the French-speaking countries. PetrSU students have been participating in such events of various types for several years.

Many regular participants of the Days of Francophonie, long before the announcement of the program, have been inquiring whether Konstantin Sergeychev, the French teacher of St. Petersburg State University, will take part in the event. This year was not an exception. The students enjoyed listening to the lecture about the latest innovations in French music, which was full of surprises.

Natalia Ershova, Ph.D., Associate Professor of the Department of German and French Philology of Higher School of Social Sciences, Humanities and International Communication, Associate Professor of NArFU, delivered her lecture “French language - the mirror of the French” equally appreciated by the attendants.

The francophone tone of this year was also maintained by the students of the Preparatory Faculty of PetrSU David Souneny-Sima, Sabir Imad Eddine and Housni Hamza, who spoke about their home countries (Morocco and Gabon) and about the role and place of the French language there. Even after the meeting, the French Department students of the Institute of Foreign Languages asked questions about the culture and traditions of these countries.

It has also become a tradition to hold a round table "The Role of Personality in the History of Culture". This year the topic was dedicated to the famous writer Molière, whose 400th birthday is being celebrated worldwide. Under the leadership of Olga Veselovskaia, a senior teacher of the Department of the German and French languages, students tried to find out why French is called the language of Molière.

A perfect finishing touch of the Days of Francophonie was the poetic competition among the students of PetrSU based on poems from the French-speaking countries. The competition was organized by the Department of the German and French Languages of the Institute of Foreign Languages of PetrSU, the Scientific Library of PetrSU and the Students' Union of PetrSU. The poems were divided into two categories: in Russian and in French.

Students who participated in this competition study French not only as a first, but also as a second foreign language, not only from the Institute of Foreign Languages, but also from the Institute of History, Political and Social Sciences, where French is taught by Tatiana Tatarina, Associate Professor of the Department of Foreign Languages for Humanities. It was a special pleasure for the audience to hear the speech of Wankpo Sonon Sètondé Barbara Brunelle, the 3rd year student of the Linguistics (“Translation and Translation Studies”), who read a her own poem in French.

Nadezhda Barymova, the Head of French Language Resource Center of the Institute of Foreign Languages of PetrSU, supported and participated in the event.