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Dec 20

20th December - A Christmas Carol in French

A Christmas Carol En Version Française

There are many famous stories about la période des fêtes (the holiday season). My personal favorite is Un chant de Noël (A Christmas Carol) by Charles Dickens. Although originally in English, Un chant de Noël can help your French!

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Charles Dickens: A Christmas Carol, Title page, First edition 1843. Wikimedia Commons.

You will know how it can be useful to watch your favorite TV shows and movies either with les sous-titres français or doublées en français (dubbed in French). While it’s preferable to watch a movie or a TV show en VOST, being familiar with the characters and the story in your first language can help you stay engaged in another language.

The same idea works with les livres (books)!

If you have a favorite book in English, you can usually find it en version française.

Dans l’esprit de Noël (in the Christmas spirit), one such example is Un chant de Noël, a story that has been retold many times and in many different styles. My first memory of the story is la version de Disney (the Disney version) where Balthazar Picsou (Scrooge McDuck) plays the role of Ebenezer Scrooge and Dingo (Goofy) is le fantôme de Jacob Marley (the ghost of Jacob Marley).

The novella is most commonly known as Un chant de Noël in French, but it was also published under the names of Cantique de Noël, Chanson de Noël, and Conte de Noël. No matter the version It’s easy to recognise le thème général (the overarching theme):

Scrooge déteste Noël

« Foutaises ! » 

Bob Cratchit, le pauve employée de Scrooge

Le fantôme de Marley visite Scrooge et lui dit qu’il va être hanté par trois esprits

L’esprit des Noëls passés

L’esprit du Noéls présent

L’esprit des Noëls à venir

Scrooge se reveille, il aime Noël et il veut changer sa vie

Scrooge hates Christmas

“Bah! Humbug!”

Bob Cratchit, Scrooge’s poor employee

The ghost of Marley visits Scrooge and tells him that he will be haunted by three spirits

The Ghost of Christmas Past

The Ghost of Christmas Present

The Ghost of Christmas Future

Scrooge wakes up, he loves Christmas, and he wants to change his life

If you’re looking to practice your French during the holidays, try reading le grand classique (the great classic) in French.

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Blog submitted by: Alex at The French Property Network - Cle France.

This blog was originally posted on The French Language Blog pages.

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Dec 19

19th December - More French Christmas Treats

While Christmas Day may be winding down, the season isn’t really over until the New Year. Christmas has many traditions, and many of them are tied to food.

Everyone loves family meals consisting of a baked ham or turkey, savoury sides, and delicious desserts (miam ! yum!) – and we’re not even counting the sugar overdose from all those homemade cookies and fudge.

Xmas Log

We have our traditional pies, and France, Quebec, and certain French colonies get to chow down an elaborate and historical dessert known as une buche de Noel. Called a Yule log in English, it’s simply a sponge cake rolled and filled with a chocolate buttercream and designed to resemble a log. Some cake makers will cut out branches to stick out of the log. Others will whip up meringue mushrooms, add fresh berries, make fake holly, or sprinkle powdered sugar on top to resemble snow. The cake as we know it today emerged during the 19th century, but the origins of the actual Yule log date back before the medieval era.

At this time, Gaelic Europeans and Celtic Brits believed trees held special powers and burning them to create les cendres (ashes) would increase the strength of this power. Before the winter solstice, people would search out a huge log, decorate it with holly and ivy, and burn it to celebrate days finally becoming longer. The log’s ashes would be collected and used in medicines. In addition to its healing benefits, the ashes also guarded against evil and accidents. It was also believed that spreading the ashes in les champs (the fields) would yield a nice harvest. Certaines personnes (some people) would keep charcoal or cinders from the original log because relighting them during a thunderstorm would protect your home and property from being struck by lightening.

When Christianity spread through Europe, this tradition still continued. The logs were brought in and burned in the hearth, the fireplace area. Onlookers would observe les flammes (flames) and make predictions about the upcoming year – important things like how many calves would be born that year and how many marriages would take place.

Au fil des années (over the years), heaths in houses were built smaller, and people weren’t bringing full-sized logs into their homes anymore. It’s impossible to pinpoint exactly when people stopped burning the Yule logs in their homes and created edible versions instead, but some research suggests that the cakes date back the 1600s judging from popular ingredients of the time. The traditional buche de Noel has meringue and marzipan decorations, and both of these were common treats at that time. Same goes for sponge cake –  it was mentioned as early as 1615 in Gervaise Markham’s “The English Huswife.”

Want to try one of these delicious, calorie-laden Christmas desserts? No problem. You can make it yourself by following one of the many recipes online, but make sure you have time and patience. Some of the recipes require more than 8 hours of your time!

Baking not up your alley? Just head on down to your local patisserie (bakery specialising in sweets) and order one. You’ll find more simple ones à prix abordable (at an affordable price) – about 20 euros – but you can easily drop more than 100 euros for a fancy one.

Bon appétit!

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Blog submitted by: Alex at The French Property Network - Cle France.

This blog was originally posted on The French Language Blog pages.

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Dec 18

18th December - Christmas & Winter Traditions: Marché de Noel

One thing in common, that I love, about the various places I have lived in France over the years are the winter markets. They are smaller, larger, bigger and better in the varying regions of France but the one thing they all have is bundles of Christmas spirit and a sense of community, even though some of the stall holders travel the country to different markets; all the 'locals' visit the town square and share du vin chaud under des illuminations de Noel (Christmas lights).

If you are planning a viewing trip in December be sure to not only visit many nice french houses for sale, take time off and soak up the atmosphere at one of the local French winter markets.

Christmas Winter Markets in France

Photo by Jean-Pierre Dalbéra on Flickr

In many pays européens (European countries) December brings les marchés de Noel (Christmas markets). These marchés are a special seasonal affaire that last all too short, but provide a nice traditional atmosphere right in the middle of town.

The tradition originally comes from l’Europe centrale (Central Europe), and as such, the most famous marchés de Noel se trouve en Alsace (are found in Alsace). But there are well known marchés all throughout France.

Dans un marché de Noel you can buy all kinds of jouets (toys) and other petits cadeaux (small gifts), or for those older kids in the crowd, du vin chaud (mulled wine). The traditional shops line the streets, creating an outdoor shopping experience, a real winter wonderland.

While enjoying du vin chaud under des illuminations de Noel (Christmas lights), you might even catch un spectacle (a performance) or two. All in all, se promener dans (taking a walk in) un marché de Noel is the perfect way to get into the holiday spirit.

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Blog submitted by: David at The French Property Network - Cle France.

This blog was originally posted on The French Language Blog pages.

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Dec 15

15th December - Too Dark for Christmas ?

Beware the Christmas Cannibal of France

How a whip-wielding butcher became St. Nick’s sidekick.

A Butcher, a man with a whip, and a jolly bishop walk into a bar. This is not, in fact, the opening line of a twisted joke—it’s preparation for the biggest day of the year in Nancy, an elegant city in France’s Lorraine region.

St. Nicholas Day is celebrated across many European countries on December 6 or the weekend following it. Each evening in Nancy from late November till early January, a lights display projects a story onto the opulent façade of the Hôtel de Ville. The expectant crowd watches as three children knock on the door of a local butcher, only to be chopped up into little pieces and left to cure in a salting pot. Falling snowflakes are replaced with chunks of veal.

You might be wondering what this gruesome scene has to do with St. Nicholas, who is the predecessor of Santa Claus. Often throughout Europe, St. Nicholas is said to be accompanied by an evil nemesis designed to frighten children into good behaviour. Germany has Hans Trapp, Holland has Zwarte Piet, and Austria is best known for the Krampus, a horned beast that charges the crowd with threatening roars.

Christmas Cannibal Butcher

In the Lorraine region of France, St. Nicholas’s companion is called Père Fouettard, meaning Father Whipper or Father Flog. He has a bit of a kinky vagabond look, wearing ragged clothes, donning a straggly black beard, and carrying a whip and chain. He’s also a butcher, and he attempts to eat children.

How did St. Nicholas get paired with a whip-wielding cannibal? The answer starts over 1,500 years ago with the origin of Santa Claus and evolved over the centuries thanks to a miraculous medieval battle in France, a heavy sprinkle of rumours, and some extraordinary embellishments.

It’s widely believed that St. Nicholas was from present-day Türkiye. He was likely the bishop of Myra, born towards the end of the 4th century in Patara. It’s said he performed miracles as an infant and during his life. The bishop died on December 6, 343. It was believed his body produced an oil that held healing properties, which scientists think was actually water from the damp tomb. In the 11th century, merchants from Italy launched a quest to retrieve his body. They were successful: The bishop’s remains were exhumed and brought to Bari.

Word spread, and people all over Europe wanted a piece. During the first crusade (1096–99), a lord of Lorraine raided St. Nicholas’s tomb in Italy, severed the tip of his finger, brought it back to his French homeland, and built a church to house the relic in Saint-Nicolas-de-Port. The saint therefore became highly revered throughout Lorraine.

A few centuries later, St. Nicholas is thought to have saved the people of this region during battle. In 1476, Charles the Bold laid siege to the city of Nancy. Charles had been overtaking much of France, so it should have been an easy win. Food within the city was running out, and many citizens resorted to eating rats. “It’s thought many of the inhabitants turned to cannibalism during the siege, out of desperation,” adds Nadia Hardy, a historical guide in Nancy. But René II, Duke of Lorraine, prayed for victory over St. Nicholas’s severed phalange, now over a millennium old. Miraculously, Nancy won the battle. St. Nicholas became the hero of the story and the region’s patron saint.

But what of his whipping, child-eating nemesis? The story of Père Fouettard comes from another battle in Lorraine. In 1552, Charles V, King of Spain and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, laid siege to the neighbouring city of Metz. Citizens created a grotesque effigy of Charles V, which they paraded through the streets before publicly burning it. Made by whip weidling tanners, the effigy became known as Père Fouettard (Father Whipper), an enemy of St. Nicholas.

At some point along the way, the figure gets mixed in with a sprinkle of cannibalism. Another legend tells of a butcher named Pierre Lenoir (or Peter Black), who chopped up three unfortunate children. He left them to marinate in a barrel for seven years before he received a knock at the door, and a surprise visitor: a hungry St. Nicholas, who the butcher recognised instantly. Loathe to feed human flesh to such a holy man, he claimed he had no food left. St. Nicholas placed three fingers on the salting barrel and resurrected the children, who, far from experiencing any profound trauma one might expect, felt as though they’d been awoken from a deep slumber.

Saint Nicolas

“It’s likely that the stories of the butcher and Père Fouettard merged over time,” Hardy explains. Today in Nancy, the two characters are inextricably intertwined. Every December, not only is there, a projection of the tale, the townspeople also reenact the story.

“I’ve watched the St. Nicholas parades ever since I was a child,” says the man playing Père Fouettard this year. (The performer asked to remain anonymous “to preserve the magic,” as he says.) “I want my character to disgust people, not scare them.” The actor rubs dirt all over his face, attaches a long and dark beard, blackens out some of his teeth, and adorns a hooded brown cape. He makes a guttural growl like a dog and heads out to the festivities.

After the butcher, Père Fouettard, and St. Nicholas drink their pre-parade beverage (after all, it’s cold in Nancy in December), the event begins in town. During the reenactment, three local children visit the butcher and are depicted as being sliced, quartered, and salted. Salvation appears in the form of St. Nick astride a brightly lit carnival float, who resurrects the children. The butcher then morphs into Père Fouettard, doomed to follow St. Nicholas and dole out punishments to naughty children. He springs up in the crowd with his whip, giving out coal or sometimes turnips and potatoes.

St. Nicholas then climbs to the balcony of the Hôtel de Ville to greet the crowds. The mayor of Nancy presents him with a set of keys to the town, and the Christmas tree and Art Nouveau street lights crackle to life again. The butcher and Père Fouettard have both been overcome and must wait another year to scare the children of France into behaving.

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Article thanks to Anna Richards for Atlas Obscura..

For everything you need to know about French property visit www.clefrance.co.uk

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Dec 13

13th December - Christmas for Père Fouettard

Santa’s Naughty Partner: Come Meet Père Fouettard!

He sees you when you’re sleeping

He knows when you’re awake

He knows if you’ve been bad or good

So be good for goodness sake!

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Image courtesy of 'le blog marievie'.

Christmas tomorrow, so that means there are only 24 hours to right your wrongs from the past year to make sure you end up on Santa’s nice list.

In many countries, good little boys and girls wake up to presents under the tree and stockings filled with goodies. The rotten apples get a gift from the man in red, too, but it’s in the form of coal. What are you supposed to do with un morceau de charbon (a lump of coal)? Well, I suppose you could harness its energy  for electricity or apply enough energy to transform it into a diamond, but that’s for another blog.

While coal was on the lips of many American politics this past political season, it certainly was not on any kid’s wish list. And while bad kids in France also receive coal, they have another thing to worry about that anglophone kiddies get to avoid: Père Fouettard (Father Whipper)!

We all know the story of the Christmas patriarch Saint Nicholas, the Bishop of Myra who was the inspiration behind Santa Claus. Nicholas came from a wealthy family and spent much of his life sharing his wealth with those less fortunate than he. Santa is a very nice man to the kids all around the world, but homeboy works alongside Father Whipper, who takes care of the naughty kids.

So what’s this punisher’s story? His first appearance dates back to the 12th century. A local innkeeper (in some variations, he’s a butcher) and his wife capture 3 wealthy children who were on their way to enrol in a religious boarding school. The couple rob the children, murder them, and cook them in a stew. Saint Nick was not happy and showed up at the innkeeper’s door. The innkeeper was transformed into Father Whipper and became an eternal partner with Saint Nick. Personally, I don’t see that as much of a punishment since the innkeeper continues to torture children, but I’m but a mere blogger.

On Saint Nicholas’s Day (le 6 décembre), Père Fouettard travels around and gifts coal and spankings. He’s pretty easy to recognise, too. Our cultures show Santa Claus the same way: a jolly fat man in a red suit with a big white beard. There are different representations of Father Whipper, but he’s easy to spot. Sometimes you’ll see him in dark robes carrying a bag with switches on his back. Other times, he’s wearing teh same suit as Santa, but it’s black. He has a darkened face from all the soot in the chimneys (and alas, sometimes, you’ll still see people playing him in blackface) and his beard is unkempt.

So you better be good whatever you do

cause if you’re bad, I’m warning you

you’ll get nothing* for Christmas

Alors, as-tu été sage cette année ?

So, were you good this year?

* = except coal and whippings

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Blog submitted by: Alex at The French Property Network - Cle France.

This blog was originally posted on The French Language Blog pages.

For everything you need to know about French property visit www.clefrance.co.uk

Add CommentViews: 3466

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