French officials from the Académie Française (the French Academy) have stated that the terms “e-sports” and “streamer” should be replaced with “jeu video de competition” and “joueur-animateur en direct” respectively.

The gaming community has ridiculed the language ban, saying it is “completely pointless.”

“I’m French and I find this absolutely ridiculous, nobody will ever use those terms. This type of ban is completely pointless,” said one Twitter user.

The French are known for being highly protective of their language and often criticize the ‘Englishification’ of French.

The French culture ministry has said that the adoption of English terminology in their language creates a “barrier to understanding.”

The Académie Française was created in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu as the official authority on protecting the French language. Members don regal uniforms and campaign against the use of English worlds in the French language.

The attempt to ban English gaming terminology may fall on deaf ears if precedent tells us anything, as local news site TheLocal.fr pointed out. The Academy previously tried to ban “le wifi” and adopt “l’access sans fil à internet”. The attempt failed.