Did you know? Marrying a dead person is possible in France Posthumous marriage is permitted in a unique legal arrangement
Faudra Tif Hair: Understand the punny names behind French hair salons Can you guess the slang meaning of the word tif?
Did you know? France invented the strawberry As strawberry season gets underway, you might be surprised to hear that garden strawberries originated in France and can be used in many ways
magazine Five facts about Nouvelle France The five colonies of New France still influence modern day America through language, culture and place names
Did you know: A French literary classic contains no 鈥榚鈥檚 La Disparition is possibly the most famous example of the restrictive literary movement named Oulipo
Are France鈥檚 other republics megalomania or fun? Did you know that there are a variety of mini-states within France?
Few French newspapers were founded before 1945 Many newspapers were deemed to have collaborated during World War Two
Did you know: France has its own equivalent of America's 'flyover states鈥� The diagonale du vide stretches over low population zones with almost no accessibility to public commodities of urban life
Did you know: A Frenchman may have composed God Save The King We speak to a researcher who explains the conflicting theories linking the British national anthem to Louis XIV
Did you know: Priests bless tractors in France The tradition has its roots in the Rogation days of prayer and fasting in western Christianity - and is gaining in popularity
Did you know: Paris cemetery is home to a tomb promising fecundity The famous burial plot honours a legendary martyr to Republicans and is a symbol of love and fertility
150 years of the shower 鈥� the revolutionary French hygiene invention The modern shower was first used to improve hygiene in a Rouen prison
Did you know? Lille installed France鈥檚 first street heating system The 1954 experiment was prompted by a severely cold winter that killed many and led Emma眉s founder, Abb茅 Pierre, to appeal for help
Did you know? Strasbourg was France鈥檚 first Christmas market Strasbourg has been known as 'The Christmas Capital' for nearly thirty years and for many years after its debut in the early 16th century, it was the only one of its kind
Mill worker鈥檚 wheel expertise broke Monte Carlo鈥檚 bank Similarities between mill and roulette wheels allowed a working-class Yorkshireman to break the bank 鈥� legally 鈥� at Monte Carlo almost 140 years ago.
France has world鈥檚 only chapel dedicated to rugby Did you know? The only chapel dedicated to rugby in the world is at Larrivi猫re-Saint-Savin in the Landes.
Is a French gendarme same as an agent de police? What is the difference between a gendarme and an agent de police ? D.F.
New York originally took name from which French town? Did you know? New York was originally called Angoul锚me
French names immortalised in history Personal origins to some of the more unusual words in the French language
Celebrating Citro毛n鈥檚 centenary of innovation Englishwoman Linda Jackson is helping Citro毛n celebrate its centenary from a position of power. The Connexion talks cars with the former accounts department worker
Did you know? French film to win most Oscars is silent French films do not often make it to the Oscars, facing stiff opposition from the Anglophone world of cinema, but in, 2012 Best Picture, director and actor was awarded to The Artist , directed by Michel Hazanavicius and starring Jean Dujardin.
Argentine town created by Aveyron adventurers Did you know? Pig眉茅 is a town in Argentina, south-west of Buenos Aires which would never have existed had it not been for a group of 180 people from the Aveyron who decided to set up home there in 1884.
Did you know? Why the 鈥�0鈥� in Peugeot? The names of Peugeot cars are distinctive by the 0 in the middle of the name of nearly every car they produce; so we have the Peugeot 104, the Peugeot 202, the Peugeot 305, the Peugeot 908...
Did you know? Le Figaro is named after opera man The names of most newspapers relate to a geographical region, a time of day or have some relevance to giving out the news of the moment. An exception is France鈥檚 oldest national daily and one of the top selling papers, Le Figaro , which takes its name from literature.
Did you know: why is the rentr茅e in September? The beginning of the school year logically follows the longest break from the classroom.
First ever wrist watch was French invention Did you know? The wristwatch was most likely invented in France, though there are several contenders for the title.
Did you know: First French woman to get a degree Julie Victoire Daubi茅 was the first woman to be awarded a degree in France.
Over 500 French words have an Arabic origin Did you know: Plenty of everyday French words have Arabic origins, including that most typically 鈥楩rench鈥� of drinks, coffee
Why is illegal work called 鈥榯ravail au noir鈥�? There are different theories explaining why non-declared work is called working 鈥� au noir鈥� or even 鈥� travail au black鈥� in France
Belfort remained French thanks to heroic locals A look at the cultural history of a French region bordering on Switzerland and Germany
Plum Village, a Buddhist retreat... near Bordeaux Spiritual refuge named after the pruniers growing on the land
UK Trade unions have more members than France Data from the European Trade Union Confederation shows the UK has more trade union members than France
How a Paris brain drain ban boosted Oxford Uni A ban on British scholars going to study in Paris helped shape the history of Oxford University.
Did you know: A string vest by any other name... The Marcel is an iconic piece of French clothing with a name which is far more evocative than the English term, string vest or singlet.
The fuchsia: intense colour honours French victory Magenta was invented by a French chemist and named after a clash during the Italian War of Independence
The Stan Smith tennis shoe had a French name The French Grand Slam Roland Garros takes place this month, but DID YOU KNOW 鈥� that Adidas鈥� Stan Smith trainer actually started life in 1964 as a 鈥楻obert Haillet鈥�?
Military thinking behind yellow headlights For nearly 50 years, vehicles in France were obliged by law to have yellow headlights - but no one appears to know why
Mercedes - straight out of C么te d鈥橝zur The origins of the famous German car brand lie in Nice... and the daughter of an Austrian businessman.
French navy ship flies pirate Jolly Roger flag One of the French navy鈥檚 ships flies the Jolly Roger...
France honours parents who raise large families Did you know that France awards medals to parents who have raised large families?
Fleet-footed ambassador advised five US presidents Being able to keep up with Theodore Roosevelt on a country walk cemented American-French relations at the start of the 20th century
Champignon de Paris left capital years ago The famous champignon de Paris is in abundance at this time of year 鈥� however the mushrooms are no longer grown in the capital but 300km away in Saumur, in the Loire valley.
Camera phone was invented by a Parisian Did you know the the first camera phone was invented by the Parisian Phillipe Kahn?
'Mayday' emergency call originated from m'aidez English may be the international language of travel and aviation but did you know that the key emergency words are French in origin?
Ch芒teauneuf-du-Pape extends UFO ban Why the maire of Ch芒teauneuf-du-Pape has no plans to end the 62-year ban on UFOs in the commune.
