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Who knows ? For our ancestors, the Saône (Souconna) referred to a “sacred gush”; the Doubs (Dubis) to a black river and Oléron (Olarionis) to an “island of good smells”.
Eh yes ! These names that we use every day or almost without thinking about it all have meanings, but, for the most part, they appear totally opaque to us. And for good reason: the men and women who preceded us in the territory that was to become France did not wait for the generalization of French to name their environment. The oldest of these denominations have a distant Ligurian, Iberian or Vasconian origin. Others, more “recent”, are explained by Gaulish or by Latin; finally others by Picard, Corsican or Catalan. Throughout their history, the peoples who arrived later sometimes kept them as they were. They sometimes altered or replaced them.
These are the names of rivers, rivers, streams, bays, capes, islets, coves and peninsulas that Jean Maillet, passionate about etymology, decided to highlight in a recent book (Etymological dictionary of hydronyms and nautical toponyms, Editions Honoré Champion), both educational and scholarly. A dive – it is the case to say it – in the hydronyms (scholarly name corresponding to “water entities”) rich in lessons even if, it must be admitted, our ancestors often lacked imagination. Many of these designations simply mean… “river water”, “stream” or “whitewater” (Rimbaud, come back!). More imaginative, some have nevertheless been able to find their inspiration elsewhere, whether it is the trees growing on the banks (the Vernaison alludes to the alders); animals coming to quench their thirst (the Bièvre beavers); surrounding landscapes (the holm oaks of Tenise), even the gods supposed to be associated with them (the Matranoeprotective mother goddesses of the Gauls, for the Marne).
Here are some illustrations through the example of our five major rivers.
Garonne. Here two pre-Indo-European roots mingle: guy for “stone, pebble” and unda for “water”. Literally, Garunda therefore designates a “river with a stony bed”. This archaic name has evolved to give Garumna in Gallic, Garunda in Latin, then “Garonne” in French. It should also be noted that, under the influence of Saintongeais, Garunda took the form Girunda, Gironda – easily recognizable in the “Gironde” estuary.
Loire. The most likely hypothesis is that the Liger Gaulish, Latinized into Ligerisis to be compared to the Gallic noun league, league, “dregs, silt, silt”. The Lys, Franco-Belgian river, which passes through the departments of Nord and Pas-de-Calais, would have the same origin.
Rhine. If it is often associated with a Germanic imagination, the name of this river actually comes from the Gaulish renos (river, river), itself derived from an Indo-European root: laughed, laughed (flow, run).
Rhone. Two hypotheses compete here. The first is obviously the same as for the Rhine: the Indo-European laughed, laughed (flow, run), hence the origin of the Gallic renos (river, river), become rhodanus in Latin (found today in the adjective “Rhodanian”). The second, which has the virtue of originality, links this hydronym to another Indo-European word, Danu “river” (probably originally from Danube), associated with the Gallic prefix ro-, “very”, “too much”, which would result in “mighty river”. This name could have evolved into Rodanubefore becoming in Latin rhodanus then, in French, “Rhone”.
Seine. Originally, Sequana was the name given exclusively to the sanctuary erected at the source of the river, before subsequently applying to the whole of the watercourse. It would have for origin the Indo-European seik o “to pour, to spring, to flow, to stream” which one finds in the appellations of many rivers, among which the “Saône”. Note that before arriving at our “Seine”, Sequana has known multiple spellings: Secuana, Segona, Sigona, Secana, then healthy – yes, with an -a – (from the 14th to the 18th century).
From the Aa to the Zorn via the Baïse (we cannot stress enough the importance of the umlaut), Jean Maillet’s book is not only impressive for its erudition. It also recalls in its own way to what extent France is, in its history as in its geography, a fundamentally multilingual country.
FIND VIDEOS DEDICATED TO FRENCH AND THE LANGUAGES OF FRANCE ON MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL
READ ELSEWHERE
We no longer call Turkey “turkey”, but we continue to call Provence “redneck”…
At the request of the Turkish authorities, the United States and the UN have decided to no longer call Turkey “Turkey” in English. Pattern ? This word, which also means “turkey” in English, was perceived as pejorative. On the other hand, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region continues to be called Paca, although this term, in Provençal, means “redneck”. A contradiction noted here by the sociolinguist Philippe Blanchet.
Journalists, developers and teachers turned upside down by artificial intelligence
ChatGPT, the new OpenAI chatbot, manages to search for information, write summaries, interview experts, write emails… At the moment it still lacks reliability, but, according to some experts, it could fulfill many tasks devolved today to the intellectual professions.
The DGLFLF wishes you “to have the dumpling” in 2023
The delegation for the French language and the languages of France had the good idea to wish its wishes from a list of words proposed in 2022 by the terminology commissions. Where we discover some nuggets, such as “have the ball”, (“have the shape, be in shape, go well”) in use in New Caledonia.
Take part in the 2023 Picard literature prize…
Do you write short stories, tales, novels, poetry in verse or prose in Picard? Try to win the prize for literature in Picard whose imposed theme this year is “In the woods”. The deadline to submit your texts is March 1, 2023.
… or in the competition launched by the Gascon Academy
Only the French and Basque languages being taken into consideration in the 2023 Bayonne Festival literary competition, the Gascon Academy of Bayonne and its president Guy Mondorge have decided to create a version in the Gascon language at the same time. The texts are to be submitted before April 30.
Lorient will host the first Celtic summit in March
Canceled in 2020 due to the Covid, the first Celtic summit will finally take place in Lorient on March 9 and 10. With, as invited nations and countries, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.
Teachers, discover digital tools in Occitan
Do you teach Occitan in the first or second degree? The Public Office of the Occitan Language (OPLO) and the Permanent Congress of the Occitan Language will present to you during a videoconference the digital resources available in this area. See you on Wednesday, February 1, 2023 at 4:30 p.m. on the OPLO Twitch channel.
Conferences in Toulouse and Muret: Save regional languages!
I will have the pleasure of presenting my latest work Save regional languages (Héliopoles editions) this Friday, January 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the “A demi-mot” bookstore in Muret, then the next day in Toulouse, Saturday, January 21, at 11 a.m., at the “La Tuta d’oc” bookstore, 11 Malcousinat Street. Free entries.
TO WATCH
When the civil status refuses the Occitan first name Artús
These Lozère parents wanted to call their child Artús with, in accordance with the rules of Occitan spelling, an acute accent on the u (which modifies the pronunciation), as they explain in this TF1 report. They were vetoed by the administration that only “diacritical marks” used in French are admissible. Rule under which – the following list is based on real examples – Merdive, Euthanasia, Huterin and others Beltrich-Blessing and Lola-Poupoune are accepted…
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