DCHP-1 Online

French Canadian

• 1 a French-speaking descendant of the settlers of New France or Acadia; a Canadian of French ancestry.

  See also: Franco-Canadian ((n.))  French ((n.))  Frenchman  

  • 1758  According to his own Description of these French Canadians, whom he represents as an indolent People . . . it is not in the least probable that Quebec should be raised to this greatness by them?
  • 1823  An hon. member said the French Canadians will be gradually melted down and in a few generations be reduced to one language.
  • 1887  If people don't choose to call us simply "Canadians," though we are the original emigrants from Europe, then let them at least call us French Canadians.
  • 1966  She . . . had married a French Canadian, had learned his language completely, adopted his faith and now wanted to know what the hell was going on in Quebec

• 2a Hist. a breed of sturdy, black draught horse developed in Quebec from stock brought to Canada by early French settlers.

  See also: Canadian horse  French-Canadian (def 2,)  

  • 1901  But even as it heaved, he heard Aleck's call and the answering crash, and before he could get his team a-going, the French-Canadians were off for their pile at a gallop, with the lines flying in the air behind them.
  • 1931  . . . soon behind a spanking pair of French Canadians in a double sleigh the party drove down through the Lower Town. . . .
  • 1941  . . . the French-Canadian Horse Breeders' Association was formed in 1895.

• 2b a breed of small cattle developed in Quebec from stock brought to Canada by early French settlers.

  See also: Canadian cattle  

  • 1936  Canadian cattle, formerly called French-Canadian, represent a remarkable survival of a type brought to this continent by the early French settlers.
  • 1941  The name of the breed was changed officially from French Canadian to Canadian at the annual meeting of the [Canadian Cattle Breeders ' ] Association in 1930.
  • 1958  French-Canadian--A minor breed of dairy cattle, the forbears of which were brought to Canada by French settlers more than 250 years ago, but the breed was developed in Canada. The cattle . . . are about the same size as Jerseys, are active, vigorous and able to withstand long winters. They are black in color or black with a fawn or orange colored strip down the back and around the muzzle. . . . the yield is about equal to that of the Jersey.

• 3 the kind of French spoken by French Canadians, especially those of Quebec, or by people descended from the French of Quebec.

  See also: Canadian French (def 2.)  

  • 1929  He hailed me in French Canadian. So it was David! The Prairie came to life again.