French female names: history and traditions. French names, Russian names in French

In France there are many completely unique cultural traditions, which may well include the formation of names and the order of naming children in the family. This especially applies to male names, which will be discussed in this article. Modern parents, of course, are deviating from family routines that have been mandatory for several centuries in a row. Many male French names are increasingly being replaced by biblical ones or those with English roots, which do not sound at all French.

However, French names for boys are often used in other countries. But not every parent knows what they mean and whether they are really so popular in France itself. To understand how popular the male name that you suddenly want to give to your baby is, it’s worth learning more about it.

What are they?

Like women's, men's French names have a unique melody and softness of sound. Perhaps, in no other country in the world will you hear such a charming pronunciation of the sound “r”. It is he who carries that special French charm. Despite the fact that the French are considered incredibly passionate, their names often sound soothing: Henri, Louis, Charles. Names on French pronounced softly, especially if sounds such as “r”, “t”, “k” and others are at the end of a word or follow one after another. For example, the traditional French “Godfried” most often sounds like “Godefroy”. And there are many such examples.

Another feature of the use of the name for the French of past centuries is its versatility. This means that both boys and girls were often called the same. An example of this is the names Corentin, Michel and some others.

Origin of French names

Most male French names are derived from biblical ones. Most often, they were modified in accordance with the ideas of ordinary people about the beauty of sound. An example of this is the names Pierre (Peter), Benjamin (Benjamin) and Michel (Michael). As can be seen from the above examples, the sounds in them are always softer than in the original version. Often French names in Russian, for example, acquire a harsher and rougher sound, losing their unique charm.

Also in France, borrowing proper names from neighboring cultures has been practiced since ancient times. During the wars of conquest with the participation of this state, new unusual names, which were the names given to newborn boys.

What were sons called in France: family traditions

Very interesting French traditions when naming children, they differ little from the rules adopted by other peoples. As a rule, male French names, the list and meaning of which will be given below, were given according to the following principle:

• the first-born was given the name of his paternal grandfather, and the names of his maternal grandfather and the saint under whose protection the boy was born were added;
• the second son in the family was given the name of his paternal great-grandfather, and the name of his mother's grandmother and the name of the saint were added to it.

These traditions were mandatory until 1966, when parents were legally allowed to choose the last name (saint) for their child. And only in 1993 in France it was officially allowed to choose a child’s first name from among those that parents liked.

Perhaps the reader will have a question about how several names could form a single whole. It's simple - in France, almost all male names were compound. What were they, which of them were used in everyday life, and what did the writing of such names look like? Let's figure this out right now.

Compound names in France

The tradition of giving boys double or triple names developed in France with the advent of Catholicism. Initially, this was done so that the child would be protected by several patron saints at once. Double names became most widespread in past centuries, but even now parents often give their babies traditional male French names consisting of several. An example of this is Jean-Paul, Jean-Claude and Pierre-Marie.

By the way, many modern celebrities (film actors, musicians and artists) have double and triple names. Among them are Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jean-Paul Gaultier and many others.

Writing and pronunciation of compound names

Double names that are written with a hyphen, in Everyday life pronounced in full, that is, as written in the documents. It is a completely different matter when a boy is called Antoine Michel Louis or Leonce Maurice Noel. In this case, in everyday life they use one of the names and simply call the children - Antoine (Titi) or Maurice, for example.

Often double or triple names, which are written without a hyphen, allow their owners to change them without paperwork at the registration authorities. For example, a man named Jean Battisto Robert, who was known as Jean from childhood, may tomorrow ask to be called Robert and will henceforth introduce himself only as such.

Meaning of French names

The lion's share of male names in France have Latin or Greek roots and came to the country through the adoption of Christianity. In fact, there are very few native French names. These include only Laurens and Laurentin (who arrived/originally came from Laurentum), Lope (like a wolf) and Remy (sitting on oars, a rower).

Many modern French names, as stated at the very beginning of this article, are derived from foreign ones. At the same time, the similarity of their sound is quite clearly visible. Other than that, they have the same meaning. So that readers can verify this, we present several values:

• Constantin (French) - Constantine (Roman) - constant, constancy, stable.
• Christophe (French) - Cristiano (Port.) - Christian (English) - presented by Christ.
• Leon (French) - Leonardo (Italian) - Leo (Russian) - like a lion.
• Markel (French) - Marcus (Italian) - Martin (German) - warlike.
• Nicolas (French) - Nikolaus (German) - Nikolai (Russian) - victory of humanity.

This list can be continued indefinitely. However, we will not do this, but will try to decide which male names the French themselves consider the most beautiful today.

The most beautiful French names

According to research, the French name Thierry, Christophe, Pierre and Jean among the most beautiful male names. In their opinion, such beautiful French names for boys as Michel (Michel), Alain (Alain) and Philippe (Philip) have no less charm.

In other countries, the following names are considered beautiful, having French roots: Sebastian, Jacques, Claude, Vincent, Francois and Dominique. As a rule, the high popularity of names is ensured by film actors or other famous personalities. It is this indicator that is the main point in classifying them as the most beautiful or simply euphonious names.

What male names are popular in France?

At present, the process of forming new proper names in France has not been completed. IN last years It became fashionable to name children by abbreviation and some modification of foreign names. They are also used unchanged. Which ones are the most popular? French names that have been in the top 10 in the last 5 years are most often of British (Kevin, Axel, Jed and Tom), Italian (Enzo and Theo) origin. Very often, young parents call their sons Lucas, Arthur and Hugo. But the most popular name for 4-5 years now has been Nathan.

Researchers also note that modern French people rarely give their babies double and triple names, and also practically do not observe traditions in terms of the order of naming babies in the family. Moreover, some men in France judicial procedure change the name chosen for them by their parents to a more harmonious and modern one.

Be that as it may, many parents in France still prefer traditional names to modern ones and continue to name their sons in honor of grandparents and other relatives.

French names are beautiful and original, they have their own complex, but interesting story. Among them there are especially popular ones, containing options that are fashionable today, as well as the names of saints. The latter are not only attractive, but are also talismans that protect their owner throughout his life.

4.09.2016 / 09:18 | Varvara Pokrovskaya

French names for girls and men are especially popular in many countries around the world. Therefore, you can often meet people with beautiful names originally from France, regardless of what country or city you are in. These names sound harmonious and melodic, giving their owner a touch of exoticism, romance and elegance.

Features of French names

Names appeared in France a very long time ago - the period is calculated in tens of centuries. Over time, names changed, which was influenced by how historical events, and fashion trends. In France during the time of Gaul, among the nicknames there was a large number of Greek and Celtic, later Jewish names appeared on the territory of the state.

In the Middle Ages, when German conquerors came to the country, German nicknames appeared, and already in the 18th century a law was created requiring parents to name their children after people who were in one way or another related to the church. Soon, foreign nicknames lost their relevance, as citizens preferred to give them Catholic or truly French ones. Today, such laws have lost force, and the French give their babies any names.

When choosing a name today, parents adhere to European rules: A person may have one or two given names and a single surname. Many citizens continue to observe traditions and give preference to the names of saints. Often a child receives two personal names. This is done with the aim of granting the baby the protection of two saints at once. However, in life a person uses only one name, which he likes the most. This approach is considered practical - this is exactly what the French say. If a citizen, after reaching adulthood, decides to change his frequently used nickname, he can use any of his names. In this way, he can avoid paperwork and the lengthy process of replacing documents.

To one more interesting feature French names are polite terms. A title is often used for this purpose. If your interlocutor is a man, you should say “Monsignor”, ​​but if the address is directed to an unmarried lady, you can tactfully say “Mademoiselle” if we are talking about a divorced or married woman- “Madam.” However, today everything is much simpler, and a young girl is always addressed as “Mademoiselle”, and scary ladies as “Madame”. By the way, addressing a person only by name in France is a sign of ignorance and illiteracy. This is only allowed among family or friends.

State law also states that every citizen can have two names. The first is used personally, for use at school, work and in other areas of life. The second fits into the documents.

But according to the traditions of the country, children are given three names:

1. The first-born male will be named in honor of the paternal grandfather, then a second name is given in honor of the maternal grandfather, then the name of the saint is used (chosen and given on the day of baptism).
2. The first-born females are called by the name belonging to the female grandmother, then - the second grandmother masculine, the third nickname is chosen from the names of saints.
3. The second boy in the family is named in honor of his paternal great-grandfather, then his maternal great-grandfather, and the third invariably is named in honor of the saint.
4. The youngest girl is given the name of her maternal great-grandmother, the second is her paternal great-grandmother, and the third is the name of a saint.

French female names

The names of French women are distinguished by their beauty and melody. In Catholic families, a woman must have three names, the last of which refers to the saint commemorated on the day of baptism. Parents believe that the third nickname gives their daughter a protector who will accompany her throughout her life and help her avoid difficulties and problems.

If a woman has three names, this does not mean that she will be called differently. It will be called the main one, recorded in the identity document. When a girl becomes an adult, she can change her primary name to whatever her parents gave her.

In modern France, Russian names are again in fashion. The most popular ones include: Adele, Elvira, Camilla, Violeta. In turn, the French offer everyone their beautiful names, which are used to call babies all over the world:

• Amelie;
• Veronica;
• Irene;
• Carolina;
• Claire;
• Katherine;
• Monica;
• Morion;
• Celine;
• Sylvia;
• Jeannette;
• Emma.

The above list does not only contain French names. So, the name Jeannette has Jewish roots, Veronica - Greek. There are a lot of borrowed names, all of them are used by many modern parents.

French male names

Men, just like women, receive three names at birth: the main name, the second name and the nickname of the saint. Boys are named after their fathers and grandfathers - traditions are rarely observed, and not all parents want to give European, American and other names to their sons.

The most popular names of representatives of the stronger half include:

• Gin;
• Michelle;
• Philip;
• Allen;
• Patrick;
• Pierre;
• Nicolas;
• Christophe;
• Christian;
• Daniel.

Also popular are Bernard, Eric, Frederic Laurent, Stefan, Pascal, David, Gerard, Julien, Olivier, Jacques.

In the country, many people use double names, for example, Jean-Pierre, Paul-Henry, Anna-Laura, Marie-Louise. Both words are written with a hyphen and belong to the same gender. But there are times when two words are used, masculine and female. For a man, the first name is masculine, for example, Jean-Marie, for a girl, it is feminine - Anna-Vincent. It is worth knowing that if the name of your interlocutor consists of two parts, this is how you should address him: Jean-Pierre, Anna-Laura, etc.

Many names for the weaker sex are derived from male ones, to which the suffixes “ette”, “ine” and others are added. Often such additions affect the pronunciation: Arman - Armand, Daniel - Danielle.

A little about surnames. They first appeared in the 16th century. Then the king ordered all citizens to choose their surnames. She could have become the name of the father of the family (Bernard, Robert, Henry and others). A second word was added to the name, denoting a character trait, appearance features, or locality (large, low, dark, dark).

French boy names

French is considered one of the most melodic and beautiful of all existing languages. Names for young male citizens are also distinguished by their euphony. This is due, first of all, to the origin of names, which was influenced by historical events, the Catholic faith and other factors.

Popular boy names today include:

French girl names

The French are devout Catholics, giving their children several names, one of which has church overtones. This applies to both boys and girls. The chosen patron is especially important for the latter, because women are considered weak and tender, so more men need the strength of a protector.

Traditionally, girls are named in the following way: the first name is from their grandmothers, both female and male line. The second is dictated by the day the baby was baptized.

The second girl in the family receives the names of her great-grandmothers plus the name of the saint. Despite the fact that this tradition is many years old, modern youth happily adheres to it. However, among parents there are also followers of fashion who are ready to reward their daughter with any name they like. Both Russian and European unusual names are popular, for example, Dylan, Kilian, Ocean, Ains.

Beautiful French names and their meanings

France is the owner of hundreds of beautiful, euphonious names. Every year the list is updated with new options.

Beautiful female names:

• Emma is one of the rating names that has not left the first place for ten years. In France, every 7th newborn girl is called this.
• Lolita or Lola - derived from Luisa. A beautiful, playful name, not suitable for little girls, but just right for adults and business women.
• Chloe - became fashionable during the popularization of black culture.
• Lea is an inexpressive name at first glance, but despite this, it is in demand among the French.
• Mano - derived from Mari. A noble name by French standards.
• Louise is a “retro” name, sending us back half a century.
• Zoya - used not only in Russia, but also in France. Translated as “life”.
• Lilu or Lily - interesting name, evoking associations with a fairyland.
• Lena is a familiar name that the French today call their babies.
• Sarah is a Jewish name that has remained in fashion for decades.
• Kamiya is a name for all times, winning in all situations.
• Lina - derived from Angelina.
• Eve is the name of Adam's girlfriend, and therefore remains in demand always.
• Alice - has a number of other options: Alicia, Alice, etc.
• Rimma is the mistress of Rome.

Beautiful male names:

• Nathan is a leader in the chart of male names. More than ten children are in first place. If your name is Artem and you are going to France, know that they will call you Nathan there!
• Enzo is a nickname that owes its popularity to the famous film masterpiece from Luc Besson - the film “Abyss Blue”.
• Louis - brevity and royal charm in one nickname.
• Gabrielle is a new fashion trend that many couples who have become parents use today.
• Jules is a proper name that belonged to Julius Caesar. But today this nickname evokes associations with France.
• Arthur is the name of a great king and a popular name for boys these days.
• Timeo - names ending with "o" are all the rage.
• Rafael - beautiful name For little boy, adult males with this name are called Rafami.
• Mael - the nickname means something like “chief”, “royal person”.
• Adam - especially for Eve.

Popular French names

In recent years, Russians have not chosen native Russian names, but prefer foreign ones, including French ones. They can be increasingly heard in educational institutions, kindergartens, medical institutions. Among the popular ones are Daniel, Adele, Anabelle, Anais, Ismina, Marcel, Margot, Marietta, Mathieu, Thomas, Emile.

When choosing a name for your baby, do not be lazy to familiarize yourself with its meaning, because both the French and we believe that popular name will bring good luck to the baby, and the nickname, denoting a bright character trait, magic symbol, natural forces, will give happiness, health and well-being!

Usually a Frenchman has one or more personal names and a surname. Traditionally, most people receive their names from the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints. Only one of them (usually the first) is used in everyday practice, the others are used only in official documents such as birth, death and marriage certificates. Not to be confused with the compound names of the Catholic tradition: Jean-Claude, Jean-Jacques. Such constructions are one (single and indivisible) name. Under no circumstances will Jean-Claude be called either Jean or Claude.

A separate article is the pronunciation of French names (and surnames) in Russian. Obvious distortions apparently occur due to the fact that the two cultures have been interacting for quite a long period of time and this interaction is (was) of a massive nature.
Yes, that's it French surnames those starting with Le, for example Le Corbusier, Le Pen, etc. in Russian are read as Le Corbusier and Le Pen, while in the original it is read approximately as Le - Le Corbusier, Le Pen (sometimes Le Pan). The same thing happens with the prefix De, as for example in marquise de Pompadour, which in the Russian version sounds like marquise de (de) Pompadour. The French version sounds approximately like de Pompadour or, another example, Honoré de Balzac.

Also included here are individual surnames, the pronunciation of which is very difficult due to the lack of corresponding sounds in the Russian language. For example, famous writer Victor Hugo's name is not Victor Hugo at all, but rather Victor U'go, where u' is a very softened vowel u, which has no correspondence in Russian.

But the most surprising case is the naming in Russian tradition almost all the crowned heads who have ever occupied the French throne. Most likely, their names are displayed in the Latinized version, which inevitably led to their distortion. So, Hugo Capet, in fact U'g Cape, all Henrys are Henri, all Charles are called Charles, and all Louis are Louis. What makes this all especially confusing is the fact that in France, in parallel with the name Louis, the name Louis is common. The names of Napoleon, Philip and Robert are more or less correctly translated.

The most common French names(by number of speakers from 1940 to 2006)

Male names

1 Jean
2 Michel
3 Philippe
4 Alain
5 Patrick
6 Pierre
7 Nicholas
8 Christophe
9 Christian
10 Daniel
11 Bernard
12 Eric
13 Frederic
14 Laurent
15 Stéphane
16 Pascal
17 Sebastien
18 David
19 Gerard
20 Thierry
21 Julien
22 Olivier
23 Jacques
24 Alexandre
25 Thomas
26 Claude
27 Didier
28 François
29 Dominique
30 Vincent

Female names

1 Marie
2 Nathalie
3 Isabelle
4 Sylvie
5 Catherine
6 Françoise
7 Martine
8 Christine
9 Monique
10 Valérie
11 Sandrine
12 Veronique
13 Nicole
14 Stéphanie
15 Sophie
16 Anne
17 Chantal
18 Celine
19 Patricia
20 Brigitte
21 Annie
22 Julie
23 Aurélie
24 Lawrence
25 Christiane
26 Jacqueline
27 Dominique
28 Virginia
29 Michele
30 Corinne

Russian culture is closely intertwined with the cultures of many nations, but Russia has a special connection with the culture of France, which is reflected in art, science, philosophy, cooking and, of course, naming traditions. The fashion for French names flared up in Russia with enviable regularity, and the pronunciation of Russian names in the French manner was very common. However, these trends relate more to 19th century, the flourishing of noble culture, although even now you can meet many girls and women bearing French names, and often have no idea about their Gallic origin. What female names are popular in France itself? But first, a little history.

History of French female names

As in many others Christian countries, in France many women's names have biblical origin: Anne, Marie, Elizabeth, Jacqueline, Catherine. Other sources of origin of French female names were Celtic, ancient Greek and ancient Roman, ancient Germanic names. In medieval France, such female names as Andre, Anne, Guillemina, Jacotte, Jeanne, Violette, Loise, Margrit, Marie, Marion, Alda were popular. French names are universal - the same name can be both feminine and masculine.

An important feature of traditional French female names is the consonant at the end of the name - Anne, Bridget, Irene, Caroline, Monique, Pauline, Celine, Sandrine and others. However, in Lately a fashion has appeared to give both girls and boys unusual and even strange names– for example, Axel, Ocean, Maiwa, Enzo. Traditional French names are being replaced by foreign names, and girls began to be given names ending in –a: Eva, Eliza, Diana. A fashion has appeared for Russian names, and in a reduced form - Sasha, Nadya, Natasha, Sonya.

France is a Catholic country, and in it, as in other Catholic countries, the tradition of naming reflects the belief in the intercession of saints. To provide the child with the greatest protection, he was given several names at birth. Thus, every Frenchman has several given names and one surname. The first name is usually used as a personal name in everyday life.

Until 1993, girls' names were compiled according to this principle:

• the name of the first daughter: the name of the grandmother + the name of the paternal grandmother + the name of the saint according to the calendar;
• the name of the second daughter: the name of the maternal great-grandmother + the name of the mother of the paternal grandfather + the name of the saint according to the calendar.

Only in 1993 in France was it officially allowed to give a child a first name at the discretion of the parents. Many French female names are derived from male names. They are formed by adding the suffix –e, -ette, -ine (Jean – Jeanne, Henri – Henriette) to the male name.

Popular French female names

French names are distinguished by their sonority and melody. They are graceful and beautiful. These features make French female names popular among many other nations.

List of the most popular French female names over the last hundred years and their meanings:

• Marie – desirable, serene, bitter;
• Natalie – dear;
• Isabel is a variant of the name Elizabeth, which has become an independent name. Meaning – “my God is an oath”;
• Sybil – prophetess;
• Sylvie – forest;
• Katrin – pure;
• Françoise – French;
• Martin - belonging to Mars;
• Christine is a Christian;
• Monique is the only one;
• Sandrine – short form from Alexandrine, exists as an independent name. Meaning – protector;
• Veronique is the winner;
• Nicole - conqueror of nations;
• Stefan – crowned;
• Sophie – wise;
• Ann - mercy, grace;
• Chantal - from the surname of Saint de Chantal, founder of the monastic order of Visitandines;
• Celine – heavenly;
• Patricia – noble;
• Bridget – strong, powerful;
• Julie – curvy, curly; from the Yuli family;
• Aurelie – gold;
• Laurence – laurel;
• Jacqueline - from male name Jacques (Jacob);
• Dominic – belonging to God;
• Virginie - immaculate, virgin;
• Michelle is the feminine form of the name Michelle. Meaning – equal to God;
• Corinne - girl:
• Emma is huge, all-encompassing;
• Lea – tired;
• Chloe is a young shoot;
• Camille is a girl of noble birth, serving the gods;
• Zoe – life;
• Louise - nice fight.

When choosing a French name for their baby, it is important for parents to remember that it should not only be beautiful and pleasant to the ear, but also organically combine with the middle name and Russian surname. The meaning of the name also plays a huge role. In addition, it must be borne in mind that some French female names have religious significance, moreover, in the Roman Catholic tradition.

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