Walloons
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 3.5–4 million | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Belgium
|
3,240,000 |
 United States
|
Indeterminable (352,630 Belgians) |
 Canada
|
176,615(Belgians) |
| Languages | |
| French, Wallon, Picard, German, Luxembourgish, Lorrain | |
| Religion | |
| Mainly Roman Catholicism Minority: Protestantism |
|
| Related ethnic groups | |
| French, Dutch, Flemish | |
|
^a U.S. population census does not differentiate between Belgians and Walloons, therefore the number of the latter is unknown. Walloons might also identify as French, of which there were as many as 8.2 million. ^b Canadian census does not differentiate between Belgians and Walloons, therefore the number of the latter is unknown and indeterminable. In 2011, 176,615 respondents stated Belgian ethnic origin; this figure definitely includes a substantial number of ethnic Flemings who may also identify as Belgian even though the census differentiates between the two. See List of Canadians by ethnicity |
|
Walloons (/wɑːˈluːnz/; French: Wallons, IPA: [walɔ̃]; Walloon: Walons) are a Romance ethnic people native to Belgium, principally its southern region of Wallonia, who speak French and Walloon. Walloons are a distinctive ethnic community within Belgium. Important historical and anthropological criteria (religion, language, traditions, folklore) bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon Region. Besides French and Walloon, minority of Walloons also speak various regional languages such as Picard and Lorrain. Walloons are the descendants of Gallo-Romans with Germanic Frankish admixture.
The term Walloon is derived from *walha, a Proto-Germanic term used to refer to Celtic and Latin speakers.
Walloon originated in Romance languages alongside other related terms, but it supplanted them. Its oldest written trace is found in Jean de Haynin's Mémoires de Jean, sire de Haynin et de Louvignies in 1465, where it refers to Roman populations of the Burgundian Netherlands. Its meaning narrowed yet again during the French and Dutch periods and, at Belgian independence, the term designated only Belgians speaking a Romance language (French, Walloon, Picard, etc.) The linguistic cleavage in the politics of Belgium adds a political content to "the emotional cultural, and linguistic concept". The words Walloon and Wallons can be seen in the book of Charles White, The Belgic Revolution (1835): "The restless Wallons, with that adventurous daring which is their historical characteristic, abandoned their occupations, and eagerly seizing the pike and the musket marched towards the centre of the commotion.". The Spanish terms of Walon and Walona from the 17th century referred to a Royal Guard Corps recruited in the Spanish Flanders. They were involved in many of the most significant battles of the Spanish Empire. The French word Wallons in English is also used in the Encyclopædia Britannica.
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