Centre for Lusophone and European Literatures and Cultures as an area of specialization. It was also innovative in the way it combined the filological studies tradition with the newness of the structuralist proposals and sociology of reading. Its initial projects dealt with the study of the different Lusophone literatures, such as Portuguese literature, with special emphasis on studies regarding Camilo Castelo Branco, as well as African literature and Brazilian literature, and matters regarding sociology of reading, in a project directed by Jacinto do Prado Coelho. This established route was continued by the centre's following directors and coordinators (Fernando Cristóvão, Maria Lúcia Lepecki, Manuel Ferreira, Alberto Carvalho and Maria
French language French language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French 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,