The Republic of Congo has several dozen languages, with French, Kituba, and Lingala having official status. French is one of the main languages of communication and is spoken by 50-80% of the population, though its use is uneven across urban and rural areas. Several other ethnic languages are also spoken. French became the official language at independence but other languages like Kituba and Lingala serve as national languages in certain regions. The country exhibits linguistic diversity and functional multilingualism between French as the high prestige language and other vernacular languages serving various social functions.