French language

French (le français [lə fʁɑ̃sɛ] or la langue française [la lɑ̃ɡ fʁɑ̃sɛz]) is a Romance language, belonging to the Indo-European family. It descended from the spoken Latin language of the Roman Empire, as did languages such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Romanian, Catalan and others. French has evolved from Gallo-Romance, the spoken Latin in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues d'oïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, which French (Francien) has largely supplanted. French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the (Germanic) Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to France's past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, most notably Haitian Creole. A French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French.

French is the official language in 29 countries, most of which are members of la francophonie, the community of French-speaking countries. It is spoken as a first language in France, southern Belgium, western Switzerland, Monaco, certain parts of Canada and the United States, and by various communities elsewhere. As of 2015, 40% of the francophone population (including L2 and partial speakers) is in Europe, 35% in sub-Saharan Africa, 15% in North Africa and the Middle East, 8% in the Americas, and 1% in Asia and Oceania.

MasterChef Junior

MasterChef Junior is an American cooking competition television series that is airing on Fox. It premiered on Friday, September 27, 2013. It is based on the format of the U.K. series Junior MasterChef.

On March 5, 2014, MasterChef Junior was renewed for a third season, before production on season two began. The second season premiered on November 4, 2014. The third season premiered on January 6, 2015. The fourth season premiered on November 6, 2015.

Format

Children between the ages of 8 and 13 apply to become a contestant on the series. 24 applicants are chosen to audition. At the auditions, the applicants are split into three groups. One group prepares seafood dishes, one prepares pasta dishes and one group prepares dessert dishes to present to the judges. 12 of the applicants become contestants for the next round and all 24 receive one of the MasterChef franchise's signature aprons that they get to keep, regardless of their progress.

After the audition round, two contestants are sent home per episode. The winner receives a prize of $100,000 and the MasterChef Junior trophy.

Koffi Olomide

Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba, also known as Koffi Olomide (born 13 July 1956), is a DR Congolese soukous singer, dancer, producer, and composer. Koffi has had several gold records in his musical career. He is the founder of the Quartier Latin International orchestra with many notable artists including Fally Ipupa and Ferré Gola.

Background

Olomide was born on Friday 13 July 1956, in Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo. His mother named him Koffi because he was born on a Friday. He grew up in a middle-class family, without any musical background. During his youth, Olomide would improvise by singing popular songs with his own lyrics and altered rhythms until a neighbor taught him how to play the guitar.

Education

Described by fellow students and his teachers alike as "a very bright student," Olomide got a scholarship to study in Bordeaux, France where he obtained a Bachelor's degree in Business Economics. He is also reported to hold a master's degree in Mathematics from the University of Paris.