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The Académie Française (IPA a-ka-de-mi fra~-sɛz) (literally, French Academy) is a French body founded in 1570 when King Charles IX granted the charter of an "academy of Music and Poetry" to the poet Antoine de Baïf and the musician, Gourville, who named it "Académie Française." On February 10, 1635, Cardinal Richelieu (minister of Louis XIII) expanded it into a national academy for the artistic elite.

The Académie, located in Paris, is the French official authority on usage, vocabulary, and grammar of the French language, although its recommendations carry no legal power and are even sometimes disregarded by governmental authorities. It also encourages the use of French worldwide and awards literary prizes.

As French culture and language have come under increasing pressure with the widespread availability of English media, the Académie has tried to prevent the anglicisation of the French language. It is as a direct result of a decision of the Académie that the French word for "computer" is "ordinateur" and that the field of study dealing with computers is known as "informatique."

The Académie itself is composed of forty members, known as the immortels (immortals) because they serve for life. Famous current and former immortels include author Victor Hugo, author and director Marcel Pagnol, poet and filmmaker Jean Cocteau, playwright Eugène Ionesco, anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss, and physicist Louis-Victor de Broglie.

The Académie is tasked with publishing an official dictionary of the French language. It has done so in 1694, 1718, 1740, 1762, 1798, 1835, 1878, and in 1932-1935. The Académie continues work on the most recent (ninth) 1992 edition of the dictionary, of which the first volume (A to Enzyme) appeared in 1992, and the second volume (Éocène to Mappemonde) appeared in 2000.

Members of the Académie Française

1. René Rémond, elected 1998
2. Hector Bianciotti, elected 1996
3. Jean-Denis Bredin, elected 1989
4. Jean-Marie Lustiger, elected 1995
5. vacant
   1. Jean Ogier de Gombauld, 1634 - 1666, poet, playwright and novellist
   2. Paul Tallement le Jeune, 1666 - 1712, ecclesiastic
   3. Antoine Danchet, 1712 - 1748, playwright and poet
   4. Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset, 1748 - 1777, playwright
   5. Claude-François-Xavier Millot, 1777 - 1785, ecclesiastic
   6. André Morellet, 1785 - 1819, ecclesiastic
   7. Pierre-Édouard Lémontey, 1819 - 1826, politician and lawyer
   8. Joseph Fourier, 1826 - 1830, mathematician and phycisist
   9. Victor Cousin, 1830 - 1867, politician and philosopher
   10. Jules Favre, 1867- 1880, politician and lawyer
   11. Edmond Rousse, 1880 - 1906, lawyer
   12. Pierre de Ségur, 1907 - 1916, historian
   13. Robert de Flers, 1920 - 1927, dramatist and journalist
   14. Louis Madelin, 1927 - 1956, historian
   15. Robert Kemp, 1956 - 1959, literary and dramatic critic
   16. René Huyghe, 1960 - 1997, art historian and essayist
   17. Georges Vedel, 1998 - 2002, magistrate
6. Marc Fumaroli, elected 1995
7. Jacqueline Worms de Romilly, elected 1988
8. Michel Déon, elected 1978
9. Alain Decaux, elected 1979
10. Florence Delay, elected 2000
11. Gabriel de Broglie, elected 2001
12. Jean d'Ormesson, elected 1973
13. Pierre Messmer, elected 1999, senior bureaucrat and politician
    1. Claude-Gaspard Bachet de Méziriac, 1634 - 1638, grammarian and mathematician
    2. François de la Mothe-le-Vayer, 1639 - 1672, critic, grammarian and philosopher
    3. Jean Racine, 1672 - 1699, playwright, mathematician, phycisist, medical doctor
    4. Jean-Baptiste-Henri de Valincour, 1699 - 1730, historiographer and admiral
    5. Jean-François Leriget de La Faye, 1730 - 1731, politician
    6. Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon, 1731 - 1762, playwright
    7. Claude-Henri de Fusée de Voisenon, 1762 - 1775, ecclesiastic, playwright and poet
    8. Jean de Dieu-Raymond Boisgelin de Cucé, 1776 - 1804, ecclesiastic
    9. Jean-Baptiste Dureau de la Malle, 1804 - 1807, translator
    10. Louis-Benoît Picard, 1807 - 1828, comedian, poet, novelist and playwright
    11. Antoine-Vincent Arnault, 1829 - 1834, poet, fabulist and playwright - see also seat 16
    12. Eugène Scribe, 1834 - 1861, playwright
    13. Octave Feuillet, 1862 - 1890, novelist and playwright
    14. Pierre Loti, 1891 - 1923, novelist and soldier
    15. Albert Besnard, 1924 - 1934, painter and engraver
    16. Louis Gillet, 1935 - 1943, historian of art and litterature
    17. Paul Claudel, 1946 - 1955, poet, playwright, novelist and diplomat
    18. Wladimir d' Ormesson, 1956 - 1973, politician, chronicler and novellist
    19. Maurice Schumann, 1974 - 1998, politician, essayist, journalist, novelist and historian
14. Hélène Carrère d'Encausse, elected 1990
    1. François Maynard, 1634-1646
    2. Pierre Corneille, 1647-1684
    3. Thomas Corneille, 1684-1709
    4. Antoine Houdar de la Motte, 1710-1731
    5. Michel-Celse-Roger de Bussy-Rabutin, 1732-1736
    6. Étienne Lauréault de Foncemagne, 1736-1779
    7. Michel-Paul-Gui de Chabanon, 1779-1782
    8. Jacques-André Naigeon, 1803-1810
    9. Népomucène Lemercier, 1810-1840
    10. Victor Hugo, 1841-1885
    11. Charles Leconte de Lisle, 1886-1894
    12. Henry Houssaye, 1894-1911
    13. Louis-Hubert Lyautey, 1912-1934
    14. Louis Franchet d'Espèrey, 1934-1942
    15. Robert d'Harcourt, 1946-1965
    16. Jean Mistler, 1966-1988
15. Frédéric Vitoux, elected 2001
16. Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, elected 2003
    1. Jean Sirmond, 1634-1649
    2. Jean de Montereul, 1649-1651
    3. François Tallemant l'Aîné, 1651-1693
    4. Simon de la Loubère, 1693-1729
    5. Claude Sallier, 1729-1761
    6. Jean-Gilles du Coëtlosquet, 1761-1784
    7. Anne-Pierre de Montesquiou-Fézensac, 1784-1798
    8. Antoine-Vincent Arnault, 1803, excluded 1816, reelected in 1829, seat 13
    9. Armand du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, 1816-1822
    10. Bon-Joseph Dacier, 1822-1833
    11. Pierre-François Tissot, 1833-1854
    12. Félix Dupanloup, 1854-1878
    13. Edme-Armand-Gaston d'Audiffret-Pasquier, 1878-1905
    14. Alexandre Ribot, 1906-1923
    15. Henri Robert, 1923-1936
    16. Charles Maurras, 1938, not excluded, but seat declared vacant in 1945
    17. Antoine de Lévis Mirepoix, 1953-1981
    18. Léopold Sédar Senghor, 1983-2001
17. Érik Orsenna, elected 1998
18. Michel Serres, elected 1990
19. Pierre Moinot, elected 1982
20. Angelo Rinaldi, elected 2001
21. Félicien Marceau, elected 1975
22. René de Obaldia, elected 1999
23. Pierre Rosenberg, elected 1995
24. Jean-François Revel, elected 1997
25. Jean Bernard, elected 1975
    1. Claude de L'Estoile, 1634-1652
    2. Armand de Camboust, duc de Coislin, 1652-1702
    3. Pierre de Camboust, duc de Coislin, 1702-1710
    4. Henri-Charles de Coislin, 1710-1732
    5. Jean-Baptiste Surian, 1733-1754
    6. Jean Le Rond, dit d'Alembert, 1754-1783
    7. Marie-Gabriel-Florent-Auguste de Choiseul-Gouffier, 1783, excluded 1803
    8. Jean-Étienne-Marie Portalis, 1803-1807
    9. Pierre Laujon, 1807-1811
    10. Charles-Guillaume Étienne, 1811-1816. Excluded by ordonnance; see also seat 32
    11. Marie-Gabriel-Florent-Auguste de Choiseul-Gouffier, (2nd time), 1816-1817
    12. Jean-Louis Laya, 1817-1833
    13. Charles Nodier, 1833-1844
    14. Prosper Mérimée, 1844-1870
    15. Louis de Loménie, 1871-1878
    16. Hippolyte Taine, 1878-1893
    17. Albert Sorel, 1894-1906
    18. Maurice Donnay, 1907-1945
    19. Marcel Pagnol, 1946-1974
26. Jean-Marie Rouart, elected 1997
27. Pierre Nora, elected 2001
28. Henri Troyat, elected 1959
29. Claude Lévi-Strauss, elected 1973
30. Maurice Druon, elected 1966
31. Jean Dutourd, elected 1978
32. vacant
    1. Claude Favre de Vaugelas, 1634-1650
    2. Georges de Scudéry, 1650-1667
    3. Philippe de Dangeau, 1667-1720
    4. Louis-François-Armand du Plessis de Richelieu, 1720-1788
    5. François-Henri d'Harcourt, 1788-1802
    6. Lucien Bonaparte, 1803-1816. Excluded by ordonnance.
    7. Louis-Simon Auger, 1816-1829
    8. Charles-Guillaume Étienne, 1829-1845 (see also seat 25)
    9. Alfred de Vigny, 1845-1863
    10. Camille Doucet, 1865-1895
    11. Charles Costa de Beauregard, 1896-1909
    12. Hippolyte Langlois, 1911-1912
    13. Émile Boutroux, 1912-1921
    14. Pierre de Nolhac, 1922-1936
    15. Georges Grente, 1936-1959
    16. Henri Massis, 1960-1970
    17. Georges Izard, 1971-1973
    18. Robert Aron, 1974-1975
    19. Maurice Rheims, 1976-2003
33. Michel Mohrt, elected 1985
34. François Cheng, elected 2002
35. Yves Pouliquen, elected 2001
36. Jean-François Deniau, elected 1992
37. Robert-Ambroise-Marie Carré, elected 1975
38. François Jacob, elected 1996
39. Bertrand Poirot-Delpech, elected 1986
40. Pierre-Jean Rémy, elected 1988
    1. Daniel de Priézac, 1639 - 1662, law professor
    2. Michel Le Clerc, 1662 - 1691, lawyer
    3. Jacques de Tourreil, 1692 - 1714]], translater
    4. Jean-Roland Mallet, 1714 - 1736, royal valet
    5. Jean-François Boyer, 1736 - 1755, ecclesiastic
    6. Nicolas Thyrel de Boismont, 1755- 1786, ecclesiastic
    7. Claude-Carloman de Rulhière, 1787 - 1791, diplomat, poet and historian
    8. Pierre-Jean-Georges Cabanis, 1803 - 1808, medical doctor and physiologist
    9. Antoine-Louis-Claude Destutt de Tracy, 1808 - 1836, philosopher
    10. François Guizot, 1836 - 1874, politician and historian
    11. Jean-Baptiste Dumas, 1875 - 1884, politician and chemist
    12. Joseph Bertrand, 1884 - 1900, mathematician, historian of science
    13. Marcellin Berthelot, 1900 - 1907, politician, chemist, essayist, historian of science
    14. Francis Charmes, 1908 - 1916, diplomat and journalist
    15. Jules Cambon, 1918 - 1935, diplomat, lawyer, senior civil servant
    16. Lucien Lacaze, 1936 - 1955, admiral
    17. Jacques Chastenet, 1956 - 1978, journalist, historian and diplomat
    18. Georges Dumézil, 1978 - 1986, philologist and historian of civilizations

External link

Académie's website (in French)