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Can one ever say : “le jour quand je suis né” instead of “le jour où je suis né” (illogical)?

Stéphane Gimenez
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B. Scholl
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2 Answers2

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There is nothing illogical in où je suis né.

Où can be used with both space and time references and this was already the case with the latin ubi from which où comes from.

On the other hand, unlike Spanish (El día cuando nací) or Italian (Il giorno cuando sono nato), quand can only be used as a conjonction de subordination, e.g.:

Ma sœur avait trois ans quand je suis né.

When a relative pronoun introduces a time or a location, où is used, thus:

Le jour où je suis né.

Stéphane Gimenez
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jlliagre
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  • Who says that I cannot use quand, which is more logical than où? I know I will be corrected but I will attack lack of logic as I wish! – B. Scholl Nov 13 '16 at 13:25
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    @B.Scholl If you think it is logical to use an interrogative pronoun (quand) in place of a relative pronoun (où), you may say so but it won't change the fact that où is the normal logical relative pronoun to express time (as Jiliagre says - Latin heritage from ubi which expressed both time & place). – None Nov 13 '16 at 17:19
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    @B.Scholl If you say it that way, you will likely be always understood. It is a common mistake made by non native speakers but the fact it is incorrect. A similar one would be using que instead of dont, e.g. Ce que je t'ai parlé. Most if not all languages, except possibly esperanto, aren't built from logical rules. – jlliagre Nov 13 '16 at 18:19
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où est un pronom relatif de lieu, secondairement de temps

voir le CNRTL

alors que quand ne permet pas ces constructions, sauf en tant que conjonction de subordination (temporelle) : quand il est né ... :

Le jour quand il est né est incorrect.

Il a crié quand il est né est correct.

guillaume girod-vitouchkina
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  • Your arguments are circular. Quand can be used in constructions if the speaker wishes and if he/she is understood or can explain why it is sensible to 'break the rules'. – B. Scholl Nov 13 '16 at 13:36
  • @B.Scholl , j'ai complété les exemples, avec ce qui est incorrect ou correct. Ce n'est pas selon le souhait de celui qui parle. – guillaume girod-vitouchkina Nov 18 '16 at 22:08