The École des Jeunes de langues was a

language school A language school is a school where one studies a foreign language. Classes at a language school are usually geared towards, for example, communicative competence in a foreign language. Language learning in such schools typically supplements fo ...

founded by

Jean-Baptiste Colbert Jean-Baptiste Colbert (; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a French statesman who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His lasting impact on the organization of the countr ...

in 1669 to train interpreters and translators (then called

dragoman A dragoman was an Interpreter (communication), interpreter, translator, and official guide between Turkish language, Turkish-, Arabic language, Arabic-, and Persian language, Persian-speaking countries and polity, polities of the Middle East and ...

s after the Ottoman and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

word for such a figure, like Covielle in '' Le Bourgeois gentilhomme'') in the languages of the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

(Turkish, Arabic, Persian, Armenian, etc.) for

ancien regime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Socié ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It systematized such training activity, which had begun informally at the '' Collège des trois langues''; the latter had been created in 1530 by

Francis I of France Francis I (; ; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-law Louis&nbs ...

on the initiative of Henry IV's widow,

Marie de Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as regent ...

, to offer a course in Arabic. The training of the students (''jeunes de langues'') was done partly in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

and partly in Paris. They were often the sons of French diplomats or merchants already operating in the Ottoman Empire or the Christian areas of the east. It was annexed in the 18th century by the Collège des Jésuites, the future

lycée Louis le Grand In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

. In the 19th century, the school was gradually absorbed into the

École des langues orientales Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (; ), abbreviated as INALCO, is a French Grand Etablissement with a specializing in the teaching of languages and cultures from the world. Its coverage spans languages of Central Europ ...

Alumni

Jean-Baptiste Adanson Jean-Baptiste () is a male French name, originating with Saint John the Baptist, and sometimes shortened to Baptiste. The name may refer to any of the following: Persons * Charles XIV John of Sweden, born Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, was Kin ...

, (1732–1804) *

Alexandre Deval Alexandre may refer to: * Alexandre (given name) * Alexandre (surname) * Alexandre (film) See also * Alexander * Alexandra (disambiguation) * Xano (disambiguation) Xano is the name of: * Xano, a Portuguese hypocoristic of the name " Alexandre (di ...

, (1716–1771) *

Charles Deval Charles Deval (December 6, 1806 – April 9, 1862) was a French ophthalmologist born in Galata, Pera, Constantinople, He was the son of dragoman Constantin Deval (1767–1816). He studied medicine in University of Paris, Paris, receiving his doct ...

, (1806–1862) *

Constantin Deval Constantin is an Aromanian, Megleno-Romanian and Romanian male given name. It can also be a surname. For a list of notable people called Constantin, see Constantine (name). See also * Constantine (name) * Konstantin The first name Konstant ...

, (1767–1816) *

Charles Fonton Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was ...

, (1725–1793) * Lary Baldwin, (1736–1801)

References

*Marie de Testa & Antoine Gautier, ''De l'établissement des Pères capucins à Constantinople à la fondation de l'école des jeunes de langues (1626-1669)'', in Drogmans et diplomates européens auprès de la Porte ottomane, éditions ISIS, Istanbul, 2003, pp. 43–46. * Gustave Dupont-Ferrier, ''Mémoire justificatif sur les jeunes des langues ou "Arméniens" à Louis-le-Grand 1669-1923''. In ''Du Collège de Clermont au Lycée Louis-le-Grand (1563-1920)'', Tome III, p. 347-448. Paris : Editions de Boccard, 1925. 1669 establishments in France Language schools Education in Paris Arts and culture in the Ancien Régime * {{France-school-stub