Editing Picard language (section)

== Recognition ==
[[Belgium's French Community]] gave full official recognition to Picard as a regional language along with [[Walloon language|Walloon]], {{lang|fr|[[Lorrain language|Gaumais]]}} ([[Lorraine (région)|Lorraine]]), {{lang|fr|[[Champenois]]}} ([[Champagne, France|Champagne]]) and [[Lorraine Franconian|Lorraine German]] in its 1990 decree. The French government has not followed suit and has not recognized Picard as an official regional language (in line with its policy of linguistic unity, which allows for only one official language in France, as per the [[Constitution of France|French Constitution]]), but some reports have recognized Picard as a language distinct from French.

A 1999 report by Bernard Cerquiglini, the director of the {{lang|fr|Institut national de la langue française}} (National Institute of the French Language) stated:

<blockquote>The gap has continued to widen between French and the varieties of {{lang|fr|[[Oïl languages|langues d'oïl]]}}, which today we would call "French dialects"; {{lang|fr|[[Frainc-Comtou dialect|Franc-comtois]]|italic=no}}, [[Walloon language|Walloon]], Picard, [[Norman language|Norman]], [[Gallo language|Gallo]], {{lang|fr|[[Poitevin (language)|Poitevin]]|italic=no}}, {{lang|fr|[[Saintongeais]]|italic=no}}, {{lang|fr|[[Burgundian language (Oïl)|Bourguignon-morvandiau]]|italic=no}}, [[Lorrain language|Lorrain]] must be accepted among the regional [[languages of France]]; by placing them on the list [of French regional languages], they will be known from then on as {{lang|fr|langues d'oïl}}.<ref>Bernard Cerquiglini, ''[http://www.dglflf.culture.gouv.fr/lang-reg/rapport_cerquiglini/langues-france.html The Languages of France]'', Report to the Minister of National Education, Research and Technology, and the Minister of Culture and Communication, April 1999</ref></blockquote>

Even if it has no official status as a language in France, Picard, along with all the other languages spoken in France, benefits from actions led by the Culture Minister's [[General Delegation for the French language and the languages of France]] ({{lang|fr|la Délégation générale à la langue française et aux langues de France}}).