téléphone

The téléphone is the French term for the device that transmits voice communications and for the networks and services that connect users across distances. In everyday use it covers fixed-line phones as well as mobile phones and the services that enable them, including voice calls, messaging, and data features.

The word téléphone originates from Greek tele- distant and phone sound or voice, and entered French in the 19th century alongside the invention and spread of electric telephony. The modern telephone emerged in the 1870s, with Alexander Graham Bell credited for the first successful patent in 1876; contemporaries and competitors contributed to early improvements, such as the ability to switch lines via operators on manual boards.

Over the 20th century, telephone networks transitioned from analog, point-to-point lines to switched digital systems, expanding nationwide and international connectivity.

Today, telephony encompasses several families. Fixed-line or landline phones connect via the public switched telephone network (PSTN) and are often used with dial or push-button interfaces. Mobile or cellular phones connect through wireless networks and have evolved into smartphones, which integrate computing capabilities, internet access, apps, and multimedia. Internet Protocol (IP) phones use voice over IP (VoIP) to transmit calls over data networks, including Wi-Fi and cellular data; 5G and future networks continue to expand speed and capacity.

In the French-speaking world, distinctions such as "téléphone fixe," "téléphone portable," or "téléphone intelligent" are common. The telephone remains central to personal and business life, though its role increasingly blends with messaging apps and online services.