And as if English words are not bad enough...we have all those French words and expressions that are thrust in every now and then...the usage of which for some odd reason are considered classy and more intellectual. How the heck they are pronounced...is always a problem.
French words - classy and more intellectual? Where do you get that from? It's not something that I'm aware of here in the UK.
In this country we are awash with words like bungalow and veranda, pyjamas and shampoo, chutney and dinghy and jungle and nirvana.
Where do these all come from, I wonder?
Yes...there are many more words from Sanskrit....but most of them are pronounced in a fairly straight forward way.
About French words...take words such as...apéritif, au contraire, au revoir, avant-garde, carte blanche, chef d'œuvre, concierge, haute couture, Cul-de-sac, faux pas, genre, hors d'œuvre......and many more.
You need some more examples?
I think, from an English point of view, the reasons are fairly simple. I can't answer it from an Indian point of view, though. In some cases the words which you have quoted originate from a business environment in which the French used to be perceived as being the leaders - food, hotels and hospitality, fashion. Some of your words have been absorbed into English. Some are more apparent in American usage than British, for example
concierge. We have
receptionists. To my ear,
concierge sounds pretentious.
Another reason for their adoption into English comes from the fact that French was (and possibly still is) the most taught foreign language in British schools. French words and expressions were reasonably accessible to a significant part of the population.
Then there was the fact that until, perhaps, the outbreak of WW2 French was the
de facto language of diplomacy. This accounts for many of the routine procedural French expressions used in English (carte blanche etc). My British passport - two years old and biometric - has French annotation on the personal details page.
The effects of WW1 should not be forgotten. Soldiers came back from the front using French expressions in a rather distorted way - Toodle-oo, san fairy ann etc.
Oh, and to a Frenchman, these French words are all pronounced in a straightforward way. But you should hear what they say anout Belgians, Canadians, Swiss ... and did you know that London is reputed to be the seventh largest French town?
