A huge guide to saying countries, nationalities, & cities in French

Our planet is wonderfully diverse, and traveling is the best way to experience it. Meeting people from all over the globe and immersing yourself in new cultures will broaden your perspective and enrich your life on all levels.

And it’s even better if you can introduce yourself and ask about others in a foreign language!

This article is a follow-up to “Where are you from?” in French, so you can be fully equipped for your next trip in a francophone country. From nationalities and countries in French to cities in French, pack your bags for a tour du monde en Français !

List of countries in French

In French, “country” is “pays”. And the plural form? Same, and believe it or not, same pronunciation! Who said French was a complicated puzzle?

African countries in French

Let’s start with Africa. Did you know that it’s the continent with the most French-speaking countries?

English	French	IPA	Flag
Algeria	Algérie	alʒeɾjə	🇩🇿
Angola	Angola	ɑ̃gɔla	🇦🇴
Cameroon	Cameroun	kaməɾu	🇨🇲
Cape Verde	Cap-Vert	ka-vɛɾ	🇨🇻
Republic of the Congo	République du Congo	ɾepyblikə dy kõgo	🇨🇬
The Democratic Republic of the Congo	La République Démocratique du Congo	la ɾepyblikə demɔkɾatikə dy kõgo	🇨🇩
Egypt	Égypte	eʒiptə	🇪🇬
Equatorial Guinea	Guinée équatoriale	gine ekatɔɾjalə	🇬🇶
Ethiopia	Éthiopie	etjɔpjə	🇪🇹
Ghana	Ghana	gana	🇬🇭
Ivory Coast	Côte d'Ivoire	kotə divwaɾə	🇨🇮
Kenya	Kenya	kənja	🇰🇪
Libya	Libye	libjə	🇱🇾
Mauritius	Maurice	mɔɾisə	🇲🇺
Morocco	Maroc	maɾɔk	🇲🇦
Mozambique	Mozambique	mɔzɑ̃bikə	🇲🇿
Nigeria	Nigeria	niʒəɾja	🇳🇬
Rwanda	Rwanda	ɾwɑ̃da	🇷🇼
Senegal	Sénégal	senegal	🇸🇳
Somalia	Somalie	sɔmaljə	🇸🇴
South Africa	Afrique du Sud	afɾikə dy sy	🇿🇦
Sudan	Soudan	sudɑ̃	🇸🇩
Syria	Syrie	siɾjə	🇸🇾
Tunisia	Tunisie	tynizjə	🇹🇳
Uganda	Ouganda	ugɑ̃da	🇺🇬
Zimbabwe	Zimbabwe	zɛ̃babwə	🇿🇼

American countries in French

L’Amérique, l’Amérique, je veux l’avoir, et je l’aurai… No, I haven’t gone crazy, it’s a song!

English	French	IPA	Flag
Argentina	Argentine	aɾʒɑ̃tinə	🇦🇷
Belize	Belize	bəlizə	🇧🇿
Bolivia	Bolivie	bɔlivjə	🇧🇴
Brazil	Brésil	bɾezil	🇧🇷
Canada	Canada	kanada	🇨🇦
Chile	Chili	ʃili	🇨🇱
Colombia	Colombie	kɔlõbjə	🇨🇴
Costa Rica	Costa Rica	kɔsta ɾika	🇨🇷
Dominican Republic	République Dominicaine	ɾepyblikə dɔminikɛnə	🇩🇴
Jamaica	Jamaïque	ʒamaikə	🇯🇲
Mexico	Mexique	məgzikə	🇲🇽
Panama	Panama	panama	🇵🇦
Peru	Pérou	peɾu	🇵🇪
Trinidad and Tobago	Trinité et Tobago	tɾinitee tɔbago	🇹🇹
United States	Etats-Unis	ɛtaz‿-yni	🇺🇸

Asian countries in French

Don’t take the slow boat to China with your French learning, have a look at our French courses!

English	French	IPA	Flag
Armenia	Arménie	aɾmenjə	🇦🇲
Azerbaijan	Azerbaïdjan	azɛɾbaidʒɑ̃	🇦🇿
Bangladesh	Bangladesh	bɑ̃gladɛ	🇧🇩
Cambodia	Cambodge	kɑ̃bɔdʒə	🇰🇭
China	Chine	ʃinə	🇨🇳
India	Inde	ɛ̃də	🇮🇳
Indonesia	Indonésie	ɛ̃dɔnezjə	🇮🇩
Iran	Iran	iɾɑ̃	🇮🇷
Iraq	Irak	iɾak	🇮🇶
Japan	Japon	ʒapõ	🇯🇵
Jordan	Jordanie	ʒɔɾdanjə	🇯🇴
Kazakhstan	Kazakhstan	kazakstɑ̃	🇰🇿
North Korea	Corée du Nord	kɔɾeə dy nɔɾ	🇰🇵
South Korea	Corée du Sud	kɔɾeə dy sy	🇰🇷
Lebanon	Liban	libɑ̃	🇱🇧
Malaysia	Malaisie	malɛzjə	🇲🇾
Mongolia	Mongolie	mõgɔljə	🇲🇳
Myanmar	Myanmar	mjanmaɾ	🇲🇲
Oman	Oman	ɔmɑ̃	🇴🇲
Pakistan	Pakistan	pakistɑ̃	🇵🇰
Palestine	Palestine	palɛstinə	🇵🇸
Philippines	Philippines	pilipinə	🇵🇭
Qatar	Qatar	qataɾ	🇶🇦
Saudi Arabia	Arabie Saoudite	aɾabjə sauditə	🇸🇦
Singapore	Singapour	sɛ̃gapuɾ	🇸🇬
Sri Lanka	Sri Lanka	sɾi lɑ̃ka	🇱🇰
Thailand	Thaïlande	tailɑ̃də	🇹🇭
Turkey	Turquie	tyɾkjə	🇹🇷
United Arab Emirates	Emirats Arabes Unis	ɛmiɾaz‿ aɾabəz‿ yni	🇦🇪
Uzbekistan	Ouzbékistan	uzbekistɑ̃	🇺🇿
Vietnam	Vietnam	vjɛtna	🇻🇳
Yemen	Yémen	jemɛ̃	🇾🇪

European countries in French

Hope the countries below are not all Greek to you…

English	French	IPA	Flag
Albania	Albanie	albanjə	🇦🇱
Andorra	Andorre	ɑ̃dɔrə	🇦🇩
Austria	Autriche	otɾiʃə	🇦🇹
Belgium	Belgique	bɛlʒikə	🇧🇪
Bulgaria	Bulgarie	bylgaɾjə	🇧🇬
Croatia	Croatie	kɾoatjə	🇭🇷
Cyprus	Chypre	ʃipɾə	🇨🇾
Czechia	République tchèque	ɾepyblikə tʃɛkə	🇨🇿
Denmark	Danemark	danəmaɾk	🇩🇰
Finland	Finlande	fɛ̃lɑ̃də	🇫🇮
France	France	fɾɑ̃sə	🇫🇷
Germany	Allemagne	aləmaɲə	🇩🇪
Greece	Grèce	gɾɛsə	🇬🇷
Hungary	Hongrie	õgɾjə	🇭🇺
Iceland	Islande	islɑ̃də	🇮🇸
Ireland	Irlande	iɾlɑ̃də	🇮🇪
Italy	Italie	italjə	🇮🇹
Lithuania	Lituanie	litɥanjə	🇱🇹
Luxembourg	Luxembourg	lygzɑ̃buɾ	🇱🇺
The Netherlands	Les Pays-Bas	lepei-ba	🇳🇱
Norway	Norvège	nɔɾvɛʒə	🇳🇴
Poland	Pologne	pɔlɔɲə	🇵🇱
Portugal	Portugal	pɔɾtygal	🇵🇹
Romania	Roumanie	ɾumanjə	🇷🇴
Russia	Russie	ɾysjə	🇷🇺
Serbia	Serbie	sɛɾbjə	🇷🇸
Slovakia	Slovaquie	slɔvakjə	🇸🇰
Slovenia	Slovénie	slɔvenjə	🇸🇮
Spain	Espagne	ɛspaɲə	🇪🇸
Sweden	Suède	sɥɛdə	🇸🇪
Switzerland	Suisse	sɥisə	🇨🇭
Ukraine	Ukraine	ykɾɛnə	🇺🇦
United Kingdom	Royaume-Uni	ɾwajom-yni	🇬🇧

Oceanian countries in French

I don’t know about you, but when I think about Oceania, I picture atolls, récifs, plages et anses. If you didn’t get any of these words, check out our article on geography in French!

English	French	IPA	Flag
Australia	Australie	ostɾaljə	🇦🇺
Federated States of Micronesia	États fédérés de Micronésie	eta fedeɾe də mikɾɔnezjə	🇫🇲
Fiji	Fidji	fidʒi	🇫🇯
Kiribati	Kiribati	kiɾibati	🇰🇮
New Zealand	Nouvelle-Zélande	nuvɛlə-zelɑ̃də	🇳🇿
Papua New Guinea	Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée	papwazjə-nuvɛlə-gineə	🇵🇬
Samoa	Samoa	samoa	🇼🇸
Solomon Islands	Îles Salomon	ilə salɔmõ	🇸🇧
Tonga	Tonga	tõga	🇹🇴
Vanuatu	Vanuatu	vanɥaty	🇻🇺

List of cities in French

Here is an idea: Write your travel bucket list in French, and learn some cool cities along the way!

English	French	IPA
Tokyo	Tokyo	tɔkjo
Delhi	Delhi	dɛli
Shanghai	Shanghai	sɑ̃ge
São Paulo	São Paulo	são polo
Mexico City	Mexico City	məgziko siti
Cairo	Le Caire	lə kɛɾə
Mumbai	Mumbai	mœ̃be
Beijing	Pékin	pekɛ̃
Dhaka	Dhaka	daka
Osaka	Osaka	ozaka
Karachi	Karachi	kaɾaʃi
Buenos Aires	Buenos Aires	bœnoz‿ ɛɾə
Chongqing	Chongqing	ʃõgqɛ̃
Istanbul	Istanbul	istɑ̃byl
Kolkata	Kolkata	kɔlkata
Manila	Manille	manijə
Lagos	Lagos	lago
Rio de Janeiro	Rio de Janeiro	ɾjo də ʒanɛɾo
Kinshasa	Kinshasa	kɛ̃saza
Guangzhou	Guangzhou	gɑ̃gzu
Moscow	Moscou	mɔsku
Lahore	Lahore	laɔɾə
Bangalore	Bangalore	bɑ̃galɔɾə
Paris	Paris	paɾi
Bogotá	Bogotá	bɔgɔtá
Jakarta	Jakarta	ʒakaɾta
Bangkok	Bangkok	bɑ̃gko
Seoul	Séoul	seul
London	Londres	lõdɾə
Tehran	Téhéran	teeɾɑ̃
Ho Chi Minh City	Ho Chi Minh Ville	o ʃi mivilə
Kuala Lumpur	Kuala Lumpur	kɥala lœ̃pyɾ
Riyadh	Riyadh	ɾjja
Baghdad	Bagdad	bagda
Toronto	Toronto	tɔɾõto
Dar es Salaam	Dar es Salaam	daɾɛ salaa
Singapore	Singapour	sɛ̃gapuɾ
Johannesburg	Johannesburg	ʒoanɛsbyɾ
Saint Petersburg	Saint-Pétersbourg	sɛ̃-petɛɾsbuɾ
Yangon	Yangon	jɑ̃gõ
Sydney	Sydney	sidnɛi
Melbourne	Melbourne	mɛlbuɾnə
Auckland	Auckland	okklɑ̃
Montreal	Montréal	mõtɾeal
Vancouver	Vancouver	vɑ̃kuve
Abu Dhabi	Abu Dhabi	aby dabi
Abuja	Abuja	abyʒa
Accra	Accra	akɾa
Addis Ababa	Addis Abeba	adiz‿ abəba
Algiers	Alger	alʒe
Amsterdam	Amsterdam	ɑ̃stɛɾda
Ankara	Ankara	ɑ̃kaɾa
Athens	Athènes	atɛnə
Berlin	Berlin	bɛɾlɛ̃
Bern	Berne	bɛɾnə
Brasília	Brasília	bɾasílja
Brazzaville	Brazzaville	bɾazavijə
Brussels	Bruxelles	bɾygzɛlə
Bucharest	Bucarest	bykaɾɛ
Budapest	Budapest	bydapɛ
Canberra	Canberra	kɑ̃bɛra
Colombo	Colombo	kɔlõbo
Copenhagen	Copenhague	kɔpɛnagə
Dakar	Dakar	dakaɾ
Damascus	Damas	dama
Doha	Doha	doa
Dublin	Dublin	dyblɛ̃
Hanoi	Hanoi	anwa
Helsinki	Helsinki	ɛlsɛ̃ki
Islamabad	Islamabad	islamaba
Jerusalem	Jérusalem	ʒeɾyzale
Kingston	Kingston	kɛ̃gstõ
Lisbon	Lisbonne	lisbɔnə
Nairobi	Nairobi	n(e)ɾɔbi
Oslo	Oslo	ɔslo
Ottawa	Ottawa	ɔtawa
Panama City	Panama City	panama siti
Phnom Penh	Phnom Penh	pnõ pɛ
Prague	Prague	pɾagə
Rabat	Rabat	ɾaba
Reykjavík	Reykjavík	ɾəikʒavík
Rome	Rome	ɾɔmə
Santiago	Santiago	sɑ̃tjago
Stockholm	Stockholm	stɔkkɔl
Taipei	Taipei	t(e)pe
Vienna	Vienne	vjɛnə
Wellington	Wellington	wɛlɛ̃gtõ
Warsaw	Varsovie	vaɾsɔvjə
Zagreb	Zagreb	zagɾe

Nationalities in French

Learn how to say your nationality and inquire about others in French. A perfect complement to our article on how to introduce yourself in French!

Country	Nationality in French	IPA
Spain	Espagnol(e)	ɛspaɲɔl(ɛ)
Mexico	Mexicain(e)	məgzikɛn(ɛ)
Argentina	Argentin(e)	aɾʒɑ̃tin(ɛ)
Colombia	Colombien(ne)	kɔlõbjɛn(nɛ)
Peru	Péruvien(ne)	peɾyvjɛn(nɛ)
Puerto Rico	Porto-ricain(e)	pɔɾto-ɾikɛn(ɛ)
Costa Rica	Costaricien(ne)	kɔstaɾisjɛn(nɛ)
United States	Américain(e)	ameɾikɛn(ɛ)
Canada	Canadien(ne)	kanadjɛn(nɛ)
United Kingdom	Britannique	bɾitanikə
France	Français(e)	fɾansɛs(ɛ)
Germany	Allemand(e)	aləmɑ̃d(ɛ)
Italy	Italien(ne)	italjɛn(nɛ)
Switzerland	Suisse	sɥisə
Sweden	Suédois(e)	sɥedwas(ɛ)
Australia	Australien(ne)	ostɾaljɛn(nɛ)
Japan	Japonais(e)	ʒapɔnɛs(ɛ)
China	Chinois(e)	ʃinwas(ɛ)
India	Indien(ne)	ɛ̃djɛn(nɛ)
South Africa	Sud-africain(e)	syd‿-afɾikɛn(ɛ)
Egypt	Égyptien(ne)	eʒiptjɛn(nɛ)
Morocco	Marocain(e)	maɾɔkɛn(ɛ)

Learn countries in French with the Animaniacs

Admittedly, quoting the Animaniacs dates me a little. But come on, do you know a better way to learn countries?

For our Gen Z readers, you’re about to discover a gem… and an earworm! So here comes “Le monde par Yako”. You’ll thank me later!

Learn European countries (+ Australia) with Eurovision

If you’re reading this article from America, you might have discovered the joys of the ESC with the American movie Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.

And if not, here are a few facts about this cult European event.

• The Eurovision Song Contest is a yearly music contest bringing together artists from all over Europe.
• There are two semi-finals, followed by the grand finale. 20 countries qualify from the semi-finals and 6 qualify automatically, including the previous year’s winner and the “Big Five”, the main financial contributors.
• The winner is the country that receives the most points from all the other countries (audience and jury).
• Songs can be of any style, very often with impactful messages or just completely extravagant. The same goes for the costumes! It’s as much about the fun as the music.
• The ESC is the most challenging television broadcasting event, being broadcasted live all over the world since 1956.

And Australia? Well, they joined the contest recently, and I know what you’re thinking: not exactly in Europe, right?

Anyway, revenons à nos moutons (australiens). Eurovision is a fantastic way to learn countries in French, since the official languages are English and French. You can even pinpoint them on a map or globe. Because not everyone knows where Montenegro or San Marino is. And if you do, douze points to you!

Open your world

The world is your oyster — by the way, don’t try to literally translate this in French, although it could be fun. So learn some languages, pack your bags and go explore!

“Le monde est un livre et ceux qui ne voyagent pas n’en lisent qu’une page”.

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel only read one page.”

– Saint Augustin