How many sworn translators are there per language in France? 2026 statistics by language and region
By Keran Chaussard, administrator of the Directory of Sworn Translators of France — data as at
As at 13 October 2026, the Directory of Sworn Translators of France lists 4,912 active translators and interpreters registered as court-appointed experts with the French courts of appeal, covering 137 languages and variants.
The best-covered languages are English (865 experts), Arabic (697), Russian (588) and Spanish (562). At the other end, 24 languages have only one expert in France, and 55 have three or fewer.
Key figures
- 4,912 active court-appointed expert translators and interpreters
- 137 languages and variants covered
- 19 languages with at least 100 experts
- 55 languages with three experts or fewer, including 24 with only one
- 7,191 language registrations in total: the same expert is often registered for several languages
The 10 languages with the most sworn translators
- English: 865 experts
- Arabic: 697 experts
- Russian: 588 experts
- Spanish: 562 experts
- Romanian: 287 experts
- German: 240 experts
- Italian: 236 experts
- Portuguese: 223 experts
- Turkish: 203 experts
- Chinese: 200 experts
English comes first, closely followed by Arabic, Russian and Spanish: these four languages alone account for more than a third of all registrations. Romanian, Turkish, Ukrainian and Albanian rank above European languages such as Dutch or Greek.
Full table: number of sworn translators per language
The share is calculated against the 4,912 active experts. An expert registered for several languages appears on each corresponding row.
| Rank | Language | Number of experts | Share of experts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | 865 | 17.6% |
| 2 | Arabic | 697 | 14.2% |
| 3 | Russian | 588 | 12.0% |
| 4 | Spanish | 562 | 11.4% |
| 5 | Romanian | 287 | 5.8% |
| 6 | German | 240 | 4.9% |
| 7 | Italian | 236 | 4.8% |
| 8 | Portuguese | 223 | 4.5% |
| 9 | Turkish | 203 | 4.1% |
| 10 | Chinese | 200 | 4.1% |
| 11 | Mandarin | 192 | 3.9% |
| 12 | Ukrainian | 172 | 3.5% |
| 13 | Polish | 169 | 3.4% |
| 14 | Albanian | 143 | 2.9% |
| 15 | Farsi (Iran) | 138 | 2.8% |
| 15 | Persian (Iran) | 138 | 2.8% |
| 17 | Armenian | 128 | 2.6% |
| 18 | Moldovan | 118 | 2.4% |
| 19 | Dari (Afghanistan) | 103 | 2.1% |
| 20 | Dutch | 97 | 2.0% |
| 21 | Bulgarian | 81 | 1.6% |
| 22 | Bosnian | 75 | 1.5% |
| 22 | Croatian | 75 | 1.5% |
| 22 | Georgian | 75 | 1.5% |
| 22 | Serbo-Croatian | 75 | 1.5% |
| 26 | Japanese | 70 | 1.4% |
| 27 | Pashto (Afghanistan) | 68 | 1.4% |
| 28 | Montenegrin | 61 | 1.2% |
| 29 | French Sign Language (LSF) | 53 | 1.1% |
| 30 | Urdu (Pakistan, India) | 50 | 1.0% |
| 31 | Kurdish | 49 | 1.0% |
| 32 | Kabyle | 47 | 1.0% |
| 33 | Czech | 46 | 0.9% |
| 34 | Serbian | 45 | 0.9% |
| 35 | Hindi | 37 | 0.8% |
| 36 | Slovak | 36 | 0.7% |
| 37 | Vietnamese | 35 | 0.7% |
| 38 | Berber | 33 | 0.7% |
| 38 | Hungarian | 33 | 0.7% |
| 40 | Catalan | 28 | 0.6% |
| 40 | Thai | 28 | 0.6% |
| 42 | Greek | 26 | 0.5% |
| 43 | Macedonian | 25 | 0.5% |
| 44 | Bengali (Bangladesh, India) | 23 | 0.5% |
| 44 | Creole | 23 | 0.5% |
| 46 | Azerbaijani | 22 | 0.4% |
| 46 | Belarusian | 22 | 0.4% |
| 46 | Korean | 22 | 0.4% |
| 46 | Punjabi (Pakistan, India) | 22 | 0.4% |
| 46 | Syriac (Iraq, Lebanon, Syria) | 22 | 0.4% |
| 51 | Lithuanian | 19 | 0.4% |
| 52 | Tamil (Sri Lanka, India) | 17 | 0.3% |
| 53 | Mongolian | 16 | 0.3% |
| 54 | Bambara (Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, Senegal) | 15 | 0.3% |
| 54 | Hebrew | 15 | 0.3% |
| 56 | Amharic (Ethiopia) | 14 | 0.3% |
| 57 | Comorian | 13 | 0.3% |
| 57 | Sranan Tongo | 13 | 0.3% |
| 59 | Swedish | 12 | 0.2% |
| 60 | Danish | 11 | 0.2% |
| 61 | Cantonese | 10 | 0.2% |
| 61 | Indonesian | 10 | 0.2% |
| 61 | Somali | 10 | 0.2% |
| 61 | Tigrinya (Eritrea, Ethiopia) | 10 | 0.2% |
| 65 | African dialects | 9 | 0.2% |
| 65 | Fula (West and Central Africa) | 9 | 0.2% |
| 67 | Scottish | 8 | 0.2% |
| 67 | Malagasy | 8 | 0.2% |
| 69 | Haitian Creole | 7 | 0.1% |
| 69 | Chechen | 7 | 0.1% |
| 71 | Khmer | 6 | 0.1% |
| 71 | Lao | 6 | 0.1% |
| 71 | Norwegian | 6 | 0.1% |
| 74 | Sinhala (Sri Lanka) | 5 | 0.1% |
| 74 | Hakka | 5 | 0.1% |
| 74 | Irish | 5 | 0.1% |
| 74 | Judeo-Arabic | 5 | 0.1% |
| 78 | Finnish | 4 | 0.1% |
| 78 | Malay | 4 | 0.1% |
| 78 | Romani | 4 | 0.1% |
| 78 | Wolof | 4 | 0.1% |
| 78 | Yoruba (Benin, Nigeria, Togo) | 4 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Literary Arabic | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Guianese | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Kazakh | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Latin | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Latvian | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Nepali | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Tagalog (Philippines) | 3 | 0.1% |
| 83 | Tahitian | 3 | 0.1% |
| 91 | Aluku | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Levantine and Middle Eastern Arabic | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Aramaic | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Burmese | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | French Guianese Creole | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Jola (Guinea, Senegal) | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Estonian | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Icelandic | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Kyrgyz | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Kirundi | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Kosovar | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Cued Speech (French) | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Arabic and Judeo-Aramaic languages | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Lingala | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Marquesan | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Ndyuka | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Okanisi Tongo | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Uzbek | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Papiamento | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Saramaccan | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Slovenian | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Soninke | 2 | 0.0% |
| 91 | Swahili (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Congo) | 2 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Adja (Benin, Togo) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Maghrebi Arabic | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Bassari (Senegal, Guinea) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Brazilian Portuguese | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Businenge Tongo | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Corsican | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Dyula | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Fon (Benin, Nigeria, Togo) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Friulian | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Guinean | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Gun (Benin, Nigeria) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Hausa (West Africa) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Kinyarwanda (Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Kituba | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Mahorian (Shimaore) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Malinke | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Oromo (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan) | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Pulaar | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Sango | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Sorani | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Susu | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Taiwanese | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Taki-Taki | 1 | 0.0% |
| 114 | Tibetan | 1 | 0.0% |
Geographical distribution: regions, départements and major cities
Experts are spread across the whole country, including overseas: they can be found in 104 départements and overseas territories. Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes is the leading region (624 experts), ahead of Occitanie (607) and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (567). Paris is by far the leading city (187 experts), followed by Toulouse (96), Montpellier (96) and Strasbourg (83).
These figures count each expert once, based on the business address in their entry (4,797 entries with a location). They should not obscure the key point: an expert's translation has the same value throughout France, wherever they practise.
By region
| Region | Number of experts |
|---|---|
| Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes | 624 |
| Occitanie | 607 |
| Nouvelle-Aquitaine | 567 |
| Île-de-France (Paris region) | 551 |
| Grand Est | 507 |
| Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur | 390 |
| Hauts-de-France | 313 |
| Bourgogne-Franche-Comté | 300 |
| Normandy | 219 |
| Overseas France | 194 |
| Pays de la Loire | 173 |
| Brittany | 155 |
| Centre-Val de Loire | 148 |
| Corsica | 49 |
The 20 départements with the most experts
| Département | Number of experts |
|---|---|
| Paris (75) | 187 |
| Hérault (34) | 168 |
| Nord (59) | 165 |
| Rhône (69) | 153 |
| Haute-Garonne (31) | 152 |
| Alpes-Maritimes (06) | 143 |
| Bas-Rhin (67) | 139 |
| Bouches-du-Rhône (13) | 130 |
| Gironde (33) | 124 |
| Côte-d’Or (21) | 114 |
| Meurthe-et-Moselle (54) | 109 |
| Seine-Maritime (76) | 103 |
| Pyrénées-Atlantiques (64) | 100 |
| Hauts-de-Seine (92) | 96 |
| Moselle (57) | 93 |
| Isère (38) | 89 |
| Haute-Vienne (87) | 89 |
| Haute-Savoie (74) | 86 |
| Loire-Atlantique (44) | 85 |
| Doubs (25) | 74 |
The 20 cities with the most experts
| City | Département | Number of experts |
|---|---|---|
| Paris | 75 | 187 |
| Toulouse | 31 | 96 |
| Montpellier | 34 | 96 |
| Strasbourg | 67 | 83 |
| Lyon | 69 | 82 |
| Nice | 06 | 78 |
| Marseille | 13 | 63 |
| Nantes | 44 | 62 |
| Limoges | 87 | 61 |
| Dijon | 21 | 60 |
| Besançon | 25 | 56 |
| Bordeaux | 33 | 51 |
| Nancy | 54 | 42 |
| Lille | 59 | 42 |
| Clermont-Ferrand | 63 | 33 |
| Aix-en-Provence | 13 | 32 |
| Metz | 57 | 28 |
| Rouen | 76 | 27 |
| Grenoble | 38 | 27 |
| Pau | 64 | 26 |
Cities are counted at municipality level: experts based in the suburbs (for example in Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy or the inner Paris suburbs) are not added to the neighbouring city.
Rare languages: how to find a sworn translator
For 24 languages, only one court-appointed expert is registered in France: Adja (Benin, Togo), Maghrebi Arabic, Bassari (Senegal, Guinea), Brazilian Portuguese, Businenge Tongo, Corsican, Dyula, Fon (Benin, Nigeria, Togo), Friulian, Guinean, Gun (Benin, Nigeria), Hausa (West Africa), Kinyarwanda (Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania), Kituba, Mahorian (Shimaore), Malinke, Oromo (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan), Pulaar, Sango, Sorani, Susu, Taiwanese, Taki-Taki, Tibetan. For these languages, as for any language with fewer than ten experts, a search limited to your département will almost never succeed.
Run a nationwide search with no geographical filter instead: as the title of court-appointed expert is national, the translation has the same value whichever court of appeal the expert is attached to. If no profile is available, the express file submission service lets you reach experts across France in a single request.
Methodology
- Source: database of the Directory of Sworn Translators of France, built from the official lists of court-appointed experts of the courts of appeal.
- Extraction date: 13 October 2026.
- Scope: active entries only. Each expert is counted once for each language they are registered for.
- Language labels: languages are listed as they appear on the official lists. Some labels overlap, such as Farsi and Persian, Chinese and Mandarin, or Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, Serbo-Croatian and Montenegrin: the same expert may appear in several of these categories.
- Geographical distribution: each expert is counted once, based on the postcode of their business address; 115 entries without a usable postcode are not located.
- Exclusions: the labels "French" and "French language and dialects", which do not refer to a foreign language, are not included.
Frequently asked questions
- How many sworn translators are there in France?
- As at 13 October 2026, the Directory of Sworn Translators of France lists 4,912 active translators and interpreters registered as court-appointed experts with the courts of appeal, covering 137 languages and variants.
- Which language has the most sworn translators in France?
- English, with 865 experts, ahead of Arabic (697), Russian (588) and Spanish (562).
- What if my language has only one or two sworn translators?
- Search nationwide rather than in your département only: a court-appointed translator registered with any court of appeal can translate your document. If the expert is unavailable, use the express file submission service.
- Which region has the most sworn translators?
- Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, with 624 experts, ahead of Occitanie (607) and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (567). Paris is the city with the most (187). But an expert from any region can translate your document: the translation has the same value throughout France.
- Why does the table total exceed the number of translators?
- Because the same expert is often registered for several languages. The table counts 7,191 registrations for 4,912 experts.
- Are these figures updated?
- Yes. They come from the Directory's database, updated from the official lists of the courts of appeal, which are revised every year. The extraction date is shown at the top of the page.
Sources
- Database of the Directory of Sworn Translators of France, extraction of 13 October 2026
- Lists of court-appointed experts of the courts of appeal, centralised by the Court of Cassation
- Law No. 71-498 of 29 June 1971 on court-appointed experts
- Decree No. 2004-1463 of 23 December 2004 on court-appointed experts
