French history revealed in village names.

Newspaper article, author and source unknown.

Every small child in the republic of France is taught that his ancestors were Gaulois, whether he is called Fischer, Anderen, Cohen, Djalloud or Kaminski! The dwarfish Asterix symbolizes the ingenuity and cunning, so conducive to federal unity, which each one recognizes in himself when he faces his personal Caesar.

Another equally widespread yet fallacious notion is that France belongs to the Latin world like Spain or Italy. While the language is largely a hotch-potch of «pigeon» Latin, thanks to the Roman occupation and thanks after that to the Catholic clergy, its culture is in fact a brew of various peoples who, through the centuries, found themselves condemned to putting up with each other here – with results often far from peaceful.

That is why it is highly instructive to study the origins of the names of the towns and villages of France, and discover, as with geological strata, the traces of the different races from all corners of the globe who came to settle in this prized hexagon of land, because of the good life here. A nice way to combine sightseeing and history while touring France.

Starting with the Gaulois. All those names ending in «ac», frequent in the South-West (Bergerac, Moissac, Mérignac, Monbazillac, Pedirac, etc…) and also in the Auvergne (Aurillac, Langeac, Mauriac…) as well as in Brittany (Loudéac, Messac, Campénéac, Missillac…) are incontestably Celtic, from the Gaulois suffix «-acos» meaning village.

We could even say that these places have been relatively protected as they seem to have avoided the influence of the Franks, VIth century invaders from the East, who with their Germanic pronunciation changed the «ac» to «y» wherever they settled. Hence any Savigny, Reuilly or Champigny is actually Savignac, Reuillac or Champignac served with a Teutonic sauce.

Another important Celtic root is the «dun» meaning fortress, as found in London. Lyon (Lug-dunum), Autun, Issoudun and Dun-le-Palestel are just a few examples of this root. Lug-dunum meant «Lug’s strong place», Lug being a major Celtic divinity.

The Roman influence was particularly strong in Transalpine Gaul – that is mainly Provence, the «provincia» of the Romans. Here the «argues» suffix is common in the Montpellier area (Aimargues, Marsillargues, etc…) and signifies the large farm property of the owner (Aimé, Marsillus).

In the Middle Ages, France was divided linguistically in two parts with the South «langues d’Oc» or Oc-speaking, with a strong Latin root: Provence, Auvergne and the Languedoc and essentially the whole area where Roman roof tiles prevail. In the North the «langues d’Oil», the Germanic influence was stronger: the Loire valley and the Ile-de-France in particular. «Oc» and «Oil» were the words for «yes» in the corresponding language.

The frontier between these two ancient territories is reflected today in certain place names. Chateauneuf, with its adjective after the noun in Latin fashion is generally a Southern name, while Neufchateau or sometimes Neuchatel, with the adjective first in Saxon style, is found on the old Frankish territory. This applies to all names composed of a noun and adjective, like Villefranche, Villeneuve or Bourgneuf, and gives enough data for a very accurate map of the ancient boundary line which cut France in two.

One shouldn’t actually say «cut France in two» as this excludes all those satellite nations incorporated within the French territory while maintaining their own toponymic heritage. These include Brittany with its «ker» hamlet names (the same as the «Car» in Cardiff, or the «Caer» in Caernarvon) and its parishes with «-plou», imported from Wales and Cornwall by the massive immigrations on the coasts of Brittany of Britons fleeing the Saxon invader between the Vth and VIIIth centuries. By following the trail of «plou-», «plo-», «ple-» etc. in village names you can with surprising accuracy trace their various routes as they sought homes in ancient Armorica.

We should also mention the villages of Flanders, with their Flemish toponymy, from Alsace and Lorraine (known as «Lotharingie») where the Germanic influence is obvious, the Basque country and Corsica; and of course, Savoie, which with the County of Nice was the last French acquisition and had a strong Italian influence. However, room forbids enlarging on these. Let’s hope your appetite is now whetted for your own research on your next outing around the six corners of the hexagon of France. Good hunting.