They've been defensive for decades in preserving the purity of the language of love from the threat of globalisation.

But now it seems all will have paid off for the French, whose language is set to become the world's most spoken language by 2050, thanks to growing francophone populations in sub-Saharan Africa.

While most eager English-language parents are hiring Mandarin-speaking nannies in a bid to ensure their children ahead of the game, a study by investment bank Natixis, says we should get back to the classroom and brush up on our French.

Bonjour: French will be spoken as a first language by eight per cent of the world's population by 2050, compared to three per cent now

While the top languages in the world today are Mandarin, English, Spanish, and Arabic, Natixis has produced figures that show French will be number one in 35 years time.

The latest projection is that French will be spoken by 750 million people by 2050, compared to 220 million people in 2010.

According to the National Institute of Demographic Studies (INED), Africa will see its population grow from 800 million to 4.5 billion in 2100.

Currently, 3 per cent of the world's population speak French, which is an official language in 32 countries, but the study says the share will increase to 8 per cent.

The most people that speak French, do not live in France and are not French nationals.

Critics say the study is misleading, as it counts all those inhabitants of French-speaking countries (where French is an official language).

Colonial past: Like many European nations, France's colonial past means French is the official language in 32 countries around the world

Despite being the language of diplomacy, aristocrats and high society in years gone by, French has dropped in popularity and has been more well-known for being fiercely defensive of the 'pollution' by English in particular.

In 1994 the Toubon Law was passed mandating the use of French in all government and commercial communication, obliging publicly funded schools to teach in French and requiring French radio stations to play a minimum of 40% of songs in French.

But now even the traditional Le Petit Larousse encyclopedia has eased up slightly on its tight control of new word additions.

Next year will see English buzzwords 'selfie', become officially acceptable in French family games of scrabble, virtual currency 'bitcoin' as well as the less snappy 'community manager', reported Liberation.