We’ve collected some amazing French facts that you never knew (or maybe you did…)
1. White nights?
For one night only, the city of Paris is smothered in tripped out illuminations from dawn till dusk. Residents and visitors alike are invited to stay up till way past midnight (“une nuit blanche” = “a sleepless night”). Bring out those matchsticks!
2. Butt jokes?
Be careful when using the sound “ou’’ (closer in sound to pOOl/stOOl/cOOl) as it might sound like ‘’u’’(closer in sound to sUsan). You might put yourself in a very embarrassing situation by making ‘’ merci beaucoup’’ sound like ‘’merci beau cul’’ which literally means ‘’thanks, beautiful bottom’’!
3. Land of no morning?
Did you know that in Quebec, people don’t say Matinée or Matin for morning? They say ‘’AVANT-MIDI’’ = before noon… It makes complete sense as we say ‘’après-midi’’ which literally means“after noon”! Bravo les Québecois!!!
4. Vanilla flag?
The French flag was once plain old white! True true… For a short period up until 1830. These days, we’re a bit more colourful with our “tricolore”
5. Santé!/Cheers!
An apple a day keeps the doctor away, right? Well, not for us Gauls!!! A red wine a day keeps the stethoscope away is our mantra… So much so that French men are the least obese in the whole world, whilst French women are the second skinniest, just behind the Danish women.
6. Hot dog?
Word-for-word translation is sometimes not the way to go. For instance, If you want to order a hot dog in France and you ask for ‘’un chien chaud’’ (its literal translation) you’ll certainly get a laugh from the waiter. Simply ask for “un hot dog” and you’ll be just fine!
7. Nuts for Eiffel?
We love a good old nut bag here at Voulez Vouloz! They make the world go round! In 2008 a woman with an objects fetish married the Eiffel Tower, changing her name to Erika La Tour Eiffel in honour of her ‘partner’. The sex must be dizzying at that height!
8. Whatever you say, darlin!
So whenever you find yourself as part of a couple, one of you is often perceived by outsiders as the boss/bully/tyrant, right? In the English language this person is known as “the one who wears the trousers”. Same deal in the French language, the dominant half PORTE LA CULOTTE (wears the underwear ;-))
9. You what, geezer?
Even the poms spoke French fluently one upon a time but they hate to admit it… French was the official language of England for over 300 years (from 1066 until the early 15th century). Not so fluent these days, those queen-lovin’ folk…
Over to you
Did you know any of these amazing facts? Or perhaps you have one to share with us. Comment below.
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