Place names, or toponyms, are not just names on a map. They are closely associated with the history and culture of a country, which might lead you to think that such names would retain their original form across languages. After all, Paris is Paris, and New York, New York. And yet, many place names are translated. London, for example, becomes Londres in French. In this lesson, we will travel around the world to focus on a few well-known place names and see what happens to them in French.
As mentioned earlier, Paris is Paris in English. No need to translate here. But listen to how Sophie pronounces Paris in her video: with a long ee sound and without pronouncing the S:
Et tu sais que Paris se dépeuple ?
And do you know that Paris is depopulating?
Caption 9, Sophie et Patrice Paris se dépeuple
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Indeed, names of French cities are not usually anglicized, as you can see in the example below. Just be sure to follow French pronunciation if you wish to be understood:
Voilà, ils peuvent aller habiter à Lille, à Senlis, à Nantes...
Right, they can go live in Lille, in Senlis, in Nantes...
Caption 40, Sophie et Patrice Paris se dépeuple
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On the other hand, English place names of historical significance, such as the city of London, tend to be translated. London will appear as Londres on a French map:
La jeune Jane tente de percer dans un milieu artistique en pleine effervescence à Londres.
Young Jane tries to break into a booming art scene in London.
Caption 9, BFMTV La chanteuse Jane Birkin est morte à l'âge de 76 ans
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However, other major British city names mostly remain untouched:
Et l'année suivante, on va inaugurer la voie Manchester-Liverpool.
And the following year, they will inaugurate the Manchester-Liverpool route.
Caption 25, Il était une fois: Les découvreurs 13. Stephenson - Part 7
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What about other major European cities? Do they follow any specific pattern? The famous Italian city of Venezia, for instance, becomes Venise in French and Venice in English:
Grande nouvelle, Maître. Le doge de Venise vous invite à lui présenter votre télescope.
Great news, Professor. The Doge of Venice is inviting you to show him your telescope.
Caption 4, Il était une fois: Les découvreurs 9. Galilée - Part 6
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The city of Milan, whose endonym (original Italian name) is Milano, shares the same exonym (foreign name) in English and in French, Milan, with the same spelling but with a differing pronunciation:
Par exemple, sur celui-ci, c'est des images issues des dioramas du Musée national d'histoire naturelle de Milan
For example, on this one, these are images coming from dioramas from the National Museum of Natural History in Milan
Captions 17-18, Axel et Alice L'artiste
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Moving on to Spain, to the city of Barcelona, we discover that the endonym Barcelona is retained in English but changes to Barcelone in French:
Le célébrissime Antonio Gaudi, l'Espagnol qui créa la célèbre "Sagrada Familia" de Barcelone, qui comme vous le savez est une œuvre toujours inachevée.
The ultra-famous Antonio Gaudi, the Spaniard who created the famous "Sagrada Familia" of Barcelona, which, as you know, is still an unfinished work.
Captions 25-26, Voyage en France Lagny-sur-Marne - Part 4
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Interestingly, US cities with names of Spanish origin (Sacramento, San Diego, El Paso, San Francisco, etc.) are left unchanged in French:
Le fait de dessiner en noir et blanc, donc du... surtout Los Angeles et San Francisco
The act of drawing in black and white, so of... especially Los Angeles and San Francisco
Captions 94-95, Le saviez-vous? La pratique de dessin de Maxime Duveau
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As for South American cities such as Mexico City, named after the Aztec valley of Mexico, most are not to translated in French. So Mexico City is just Mexico:
Et pendant ce temps, à Tenochtitlan, aujourd'hui Mexico
And meanwhile, at Tenochtitlan, today Mexico City
Caption 16, Il était une fois: Les Amériques 9. Cortés et les Aztèques - Part 3
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Note, however, that the country of Mexico is le Mexique in French, and the American state of New Mexico is le Nouveau Mexique.
Some names of American states are translated into French, such as la Californie (California):
Là, j'étais en Californie y a trois semaines.
There, I was in California three weeks ago.
Caption 73, Le Figaro Elle a banni le sucre pendant un an - Part 2
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In an interesting twist of history, some US cities or towns have retained their French names given to them by French colonists, such as Des Moines (literally "Of the Monks"), IA or Prairie du Chien (literally, "Prairie of the Dog"), WI, named after a Fox Indian chief. The American pronunciation, though, usually bears little resemblance to the French:
Prairie du Chien est une ville du mid-ouest qui porte un nom d’origine française.
Prairie du Chien is a Midwest town that bears a name of French origin.
Furthermore, New Orleans had three different variations to its name, reflecting its colonial past. In 1718 Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, the governor of French Louisiana, named the city La Nouvelle Orléans in honor of Philippe, Duke of Orléans. It was later renamed Nueva Orleans by the Spanish before finally becoming New Orleans after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803:
L'épouvantail est revêtu de l'habit des jazzmen de la Nouvelle-Orléans.
The scarecrow is dressed in the garb of New Orleans jazzmen.
Caption 39, d'Art d'Art "Slave Auction" - Basquiat
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Endomyns written in a different alphabet face another problem. When translated, they need to be phonetically rendered into another alphabet. For example, the Russian city of Москва is adapted from Russian Cyrillic script as Moscow in English and Moscou in French:
Deuxième système de métro le plus peuplé d'Europe, après celui de Moscou, le métro parisien accueille en moyenne cinq millions de personnes par jour.
The second most populated metro system in Europe, after that of Moscow, the Paris metro welcomes an average of five million people per day.
Captions 6-9, Adrien Le métro parisien
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As you may have gathered, translating place names is a complex and inconsistent process. To familiarize yourself with the names of some wonderful places and what they have to offer, be sure to check out our travel videos. Thanks for reading!
When you want to exit a building, look for a sign that says Sortie (Exit). Based on the past participle of the verb sortir (to go out), la sortie is a very versatile word that can be used in many different ways, both literally and figuratively.
As mentioned earlier, la sortie refers to “the exit” of a building. The studio in the video below has several sorties, which may explain André’s wife’s mysterious disappearance:
Ah ben... parce qu'il y a d'autres sorties...
Oh, well... because there are other exits...
Caption 24, Le Jour où tout a basculé Ma femme est-elle réellement morte ? - Part 2
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Just as in English, you can combine sortie with faire (to make): faire sa sortie (to make one's exit), like singers and superstars do.
Voici comment toutes les grandes superstars font leur sortie.
Here's how all the big superstars make their exit.
Captions 64-65, Extr@ Ep. 5 - Une étoile est née - Part 3
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Speaking of singers, we also use the word sortie to talk about an album release:
Sortie de l'album le vingt-sept février deux mille douze
Album release February twenty-seventh, two thousand twelve
Caption 1, Boulbar New York, 6 heures du matin
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Sortie is also a verb form meaning "released." In this case, it's the feminine past participle of the verb sortir (to be released). Remember that sortir belongs to the small group of verbs that go with the auxiliary être and take agreement in the past tense. In the video below, sortie agrees with the feminine noun chanson (song):
Cette chanson est sortie en deux mille onze.
This song was released in two thousand eleven.
Caption 134, Français avec Nelly 12 Songs to Improve Your French - Part 1
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It’s not just songs or movies that can be released. People can too! In the example below, it’s a prisoner who is being freed.
Dès sa sortie de prison, Brice contacte Enzo.
As soon as he is released from prison, Brice contacts Enzo.
Caption 1, Le Jour où tout a basculé À la recherche de mon père - Part 9
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The recently released prisoner would no longer need permission for chaque sortie (each outing), unlike French residents during the early COVID pandemic:
Il faut signer une attestation, surtout attester de chaque sortie.
You have to sign a certificate, above all register every outing.
Captions 54-55, Lionel L La pandémie
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As for poor Barbara, she has to beg her mother for la permission de sortie:
Il fallait passer par d'interminables négociations pour obtenir la permission de sortie.
I had to go through endless negotiations to obtain permission to go out.
Captions 26-27, Mère & Fille La soirée
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Unlike Barbara, our former prisoner is free to enjoy être de sortie (being out and about), like the people in this Christine and the Queens song:
Nous et la "man", on est de sortie
We and the man, we are out and about
Caption 25, Christine and the Queens Christine
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Être de sortie can also just mean “to be out,” as opposed to being home:
J'aurais pu refuser et prétexter que j'étais de sortie
I could've refused on the pretext that I was out
Caption 72, Le Jour où tout a basculé Ma mère fait tout pour briser mon couple - Part 5
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Interestingly, when sortie is preceded by the definite article la (the), as in à la sortie, the phrase usually signals the end of an activity:
À la sortie, cette idée semble avoir été abandonnée
In the end, they seem to have abandoned this idea
Caption 6, Le Journal Enseigner l'Holocauste en classe
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À la sortie de la séance, certains n'en reviennent toujours pas.
At the end of the showing, some still can't believe it.
Caption 27, Le Journal Les Ch'tis
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...et de me les communiquer à la sortie du conseil de classe.
...and communicate them to me at the end of the teachers' conference.
Captions 54-55, Mère & Fille Le coup de téléphone
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However, note the subtlety here. La sortie des classes doesn’t just mean the end of classes, but also when classes are dismissed:
Ça tombe juste pendant la sortie des classes.
That falls right when classes are dismissed.
Caption 23, Le Jour où tout a basculé Ma mère fait tout pour briser mon couple - Part 3
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And watch out: in a different context, une sortie de classe is a "field trip" or "school trip," like the one Barbara is going on:
Les sorties de classe, c'est l'occasion de découvrir des choses nouvelles
Class field trips are an opportunity to discover new things
Caption 1, Mère & Fille La sortie de classe
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Here are some other uses of the noun sortie. This one is straightforward: à la sortie du four means “out of the oven."
...pour que les manneles à la sortie du four, ils aient une belle croûte.
...so that the mannele out of the oven have a beautiful crust.
Caption 62, Alsace 20 Grain de Sel: le Lycée hôtelier Alexandre Dumas
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In the next example, however, the meaning is not so obvious. Remember earlier when we talked about la sortie d’un album? This time, la sortie sort of means the opposite: "the phaseout" or "the end of an era":
Tu crois que pour toi ça symbolise la sortie du nucléaire, là ?
Do you think this symbolizes the phaseout of nuclear energy for you?
Caption 75, Actus Quartier Manif anti-nucléaire à Bastille
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Another less common meaning of sortie is “output” in an industrial context, as in la sortie de l’électricité:
Dans les batteries, on a des contacteurs qui coupent la sortie de l'électricité
In the batteries, we have contactors that shut off the electricity output
Captions 64-65, Bateau sport 100% électrique Le Nautique 196 E
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And in a commercial context, we have l'entrée et sortie de marchandises:
...logiciels informatiques pour gérer tout ce qui est entrée et sortie de marchandises.
...computing software to manage everything that is about the entry and departure of goods.
Captions 33-34, GO! Formations Présentation du centre
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Indeed, sortie can mean “departure,” as in to leave a place or depart. In the video below, la sortie refers to the time the couple left the hotel:
Au moment de leur sortie, eh bien, cette carte avait disparu.
At the time of their departure, well, this card had gone missing.
Captions 88-89, Le Jour où tout a basculé À l'audience - Arnaque en couple ? - Part 6
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In some cases, sortie doesn’t just mean “departure,” but “quitting,” as in giving up:
C'est-à-dire les différentes épisodes de sortie, ensuite, les envies, et cetera, correspondent en tout point à ce que nous vivons avec...des patients qui fument...
That is, the different quitting episodes, then the cravings, et cetera, correspond point by point with what we experience with...patients who smoke...
Captions 157-160, Le Figaro Elle a banni le sucre pendant un an - Part 2
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So far, we’ve explored many ways of using the word sortie, and like Sacha in the video below, you may be wondering comment vous allez vous en sortir (how you’re going to manage):
Oh là là là là, comment vont-ils s'en sortir ?
Oh dear, how are they going to manage?
Caption 10, Extr@ Ep. 6 - Le jour du loto - Part 1
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Just keep in mind that the main meanings of sortie are “exit," "departure," and "outing." However, pay close attention to context to interpret the less common uses of sortie. And remember that Yabla videos are at your disposal pour vous aider à vous en sortir (to help you cope). Thanks for reading!
In Part 2 of "Elle a banni le sucre pendant un an," Danièle Gerkens, a journalist at Elle magazine, talks about the health benefits she experienced after cutting sugar from her diet for one year. When the year was almost up, she was expecting to break her sugar fast with mountains of whipped cream, but it was actually a single piece of dark chocolate that did her in:
Je me disais que j'allais me rouler dans la chantilly, et cetera.
I told myself that I was going to wallow in whipped cream, et cetera.
Et puis en fait, plus ça arrivait,
And then in fact, the closer it came [to the end],
plus je me disais, mais... qu'est-ce que je vais faire?
the more I was wondering, but... what am I going to do?
Captions 102-104, Le Figaro - Elle a banni le sucre pendant un an
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Note the two different translations of je me disais here: "I told myself" and "I was wondering." The reflexive verb se dire can mean a number of things depending on context, namely "to tell/say to oneself" and "to wonder/think." In a sense, these both mean the same thing: when you wonder or think about something, you're telling yourself about it.
When multiple people se disent, they could be thinking about something or telling themselves something, but they could also just be talking to each other:
Christine et Alice sont de meilleures amies. Elles se disent tout.
Christine and Alice are best friends. They tell each other everything.
Se dire can also mean "to say of oneself," or in other words, "to claim to be":
Le Charles de Gaulle,
Charles de Gaulle,
où la direction se dit d'abord victime de son image.
where the management claims first to be a victim of its image.
Caption 29, Le Journal - Hôpital ultra-moderne à Burkina Faso
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Or se dire can simply mean "to be said," which has a few different connotations. Here Danièle is (somewhat cheekily) talking about something she thinks is taboo and can't be mentioned in public. Believe it or not, she's referring to her love of milk chocolate!
Je sais, ça se dit pas, mais j'adorais ça.
I know you're not supposed to say it, but that's what I loved.
Caption 112, Le Figaro - Elle a banni le sucre pendant un an
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In its most general sense, se dire refers to anything that "is said" in everyday language:
Par contre,
On the other hand,
"faire le beau" se dit d'un chien qui se tient sur les pattes arrière
"faire le beau" is said of a dog that stands on its hind legs
pour réclamer un sucre.
to beg for a lump of sugar.
Captions 24-25, Margaux et Manon - Emplois du verbe faire
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"Je n'ai pas des biscuits": ça se dit en français? -Non. Il faut dire: "je n'ai pas de biscuits".
Can you say je n'ai pas des biscuits in French? -No. You have to say je n'ai pas de biscuits [I don't have any cookies].
Don't confuse ça se dit with ça te dit (or ça vous dit in the plural), which means "how does that sound" or "how would you like..." (literally, "does it speak to you"):
Ça te dit de réviser les multiples sens de l'expression "se dire"?
How would you like to review the multiple meanings of the expression se dire?
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