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The paper deals with problems of using the Latin and French languages under the highbrows. Both languages functioned as a special means of conversation within the groups where they meant the group identity of the speakers. Russian Linguist E. D. Polivanov nominated such languages social group dialects. Latin was the language of the literate in the early Middle Ages and later till the 18th century. French served as a mean of communication of the social elite in Europe in 18th and 19th centuries. Many abstracts from belles-lettres show the social usage of Latin and French in European states and in Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]