The king got up late

French as spoken in France is not really the same as French as spoken in many Francophonie countries. There are many variations of words and phrases, not only across the French-speaking world, but also within France itself. Some of them involve basic daily routines.

Food and meal times are so closely linked to human activity that one would be forgiven for assuming that the terms French speakers use for the meals taken in a day are similar across the French-speaking world. The standard French terms for the 3 main meals in France i.e. breakfast, lunch and dinner are petit déjeuner, déjeuner, and dîner. So, dîner means dinner to English speakers or anglophones. But turning up in the evening at someone's house for dinner in Belgium or Canada may result in a big embarassment. To francophones in those countries, dîner is a mid-day meal, or lunch to anglophones.

Which is the correct one? Why would French and francophones in Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Canada and some parts of France be using common terms for the 3 meals - déjeuner, dîner, and souper whereas the French themselves are generally using petit déjeuner, déjeuner and dîner in France?

The terms déjeuner, dîner and souper are old French words with Latin origin meaning breaking the fast (or breakfast, generally in the morning), mid-day meal and evening meal respectively, that go back to the Middle Ages. Those francophone countries did not change them, the French did.

The French King Louis XIV, who was 4 years old when he inherited the crown in 1643 and ruled France for 72 years, used to get up late at noon for his breakfast, or déjeuner. But since everybody else in his court had to get up early in the morning, they could only take small breakfast, or petit déjeuner. The French nobles adopted the change making it a custom during the 17th century - breakfast then became petit déjeuner, mid-day meal became déjeuner and evening meal became dîner. Souper, or supper as anglophones call it, became a smaller meal, or snack, taken much later in the evening.

The English adopted the change around mid-17th century, shifting dinner time from mid-day to evening as we know it today, and used the term luncheon for the mid-day meal. I wonder what they will do to their national anthem when Mr and Mrs Charles Philip Arthur George Windsor get married. God save the Queen.

Comments

[aishah]

hi, i have a question, what is the French acronym of the Malaysian French Teachers Association?

[Razin]

L'Association Malaisienne des Professeurs de Français (AMPF) - see the previous blog, Francophones in Malaysia

[Alexa]

Hi Razin. Glad to see you're back :-)

[Nayeem]

hey..
i just wanted to know what your name means?

Nayeem

[Razin]

It is Arabic, meaning, among others - calm, composed, collected, peaceful, tranquil, serene, subtle, gentle, orderly, clear-headed, level-headed, commonsensical, philosophical, dignity, self-control, relaxed, harmonious - kind of cool, confident, sober and boring at the same time.

[Edward]

Tres bien Razin. J'espere te voir a l'aaliance alors le dix juin

[Andy]

In the north of England it is typical to say:
Breakfast, Dinner, Tea (or supper)...