I would like to know how to say years in French. In English, the old method is to designate "BC" for "before Christ" and "A.D." which is short for the Latin "Anno Domini", which means "in the year of our Lord," in other words, meaning after Christ's birth.

You would therefore say something like, "Tiglath-Pileser III took the throne in 745 B.C." For a date after Christ, you would say something like, "William the Conqueror came to power in 1066 A.D."

However, that's the old way to say it. The way to say it that's considered more inclusive (since everyone isn't Christian) is to use "B.C.E." and "C.E," which stands for "before common era" and "common era" respectively.

For French, I've found "avant Jésus-Christ" for "B.C." and the same "A.D." that's used in English.

However, does French have a version of "before common era" and "common era" that English has? It's considered more respectful toward religious diversity to say it this way rather than the older "B.C." and "A.D." way.

How would I say, "Tiglath-Pileser III took the throne in 745 B.C.E." and, "William the Conqueror came to power in 1066 C.E." in French?

Question

I would like to know how to say years in French.  In English, the old method is to designate "BC" for "before Christ" and "A.D." which is short for the Latin "Anno Domini", which means "in the year of our Lord," in other words, meaning after Christ's birth.

You would therefore say something like, "Tiglath-Pileser III took the throne in 745 B.C."  For a date after Christ, you would say something like, "William the Conqueror came to power in 1066 A.D."

However, that's the old way to say it.  The way to say it that's considered more inclusive (since everyone isn't Christian) is to use "B.C.E." and "C.E," which stands for "before common era" and "common era" respectively.

For French, I've found "avant Jésus-Christ" for "B.C." and the same "A.D." that's used in English.

However, does French have a version of "before common era" and "common era" that English has?  It's considered more respectful toward religious diversity to say it this way rather than the older "B.C." and "A.D." way.

How would I say, "Tiglath-Pileser III took the throne in 745 B.C.E." and, "William the Conqueror came to power in 1066 C.E." in French?

Answer

Hello Tom. You're absolutely right. We would usually say avant J.C. or après J.C. but some people (notably historians) also use "avant/après notre ère". Meilleure continuation dans ton apprentissage !

Answer

I have a big issue with BCE etc. How  could there be a common era before 1492? Or before  1853 when Perry forced Japan into the rest of the world? It’s historically inaccurate.