Why do people use names of areas not found on the map?
Why do people use names for their local areas that do not exist on the map, like Périgord, or Saintonge? K.S.
These mostly derive from historic provinces into which the Kingdom of France was divided before the Revolution and the creation of the departments in 1790. They are still sometimes used by locals, and often for gastronomic specialities. Périgord, for example, was roughly the modern department of Dordogne, which it is still synonymous with in terms like truffe noire du Périgord (Périgord black truffle) or noix du Périgord (Périgord walnut), while Saintonge was roughly Charente-Maritime – named after its capital, Saintes.
Some other well-known historic area names include:
- Béarn (south-west, in the Pyrenees) – from whose name we get sauce béarnaise, which actually does not originate from there… It was invented by a chef in a restaurant in the Yvelines located in a former
royal residence of King Henri IV. The chef is said to have named it after a bust of the king – who was born in the area – caught his eye.
- Berry – an old agricultural area centred around Bourges. Its dialect is Berrichon and it is known for specialities like pâté berrichon, with paté and hardboiled egg in a pastry crust.
- Bresse – straddling Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, this area is well-known for its chicken, poulet de Bresse.
- Gascogne – known as Gascony in English. One of its claims to fame is that d’Artagnan (the Three Musketeers character and the historical figure he was based on), came from here. It has a local language
called Gascon.
To these old provinces today we can add certain of the French regions which ‘disappeared’ in last year’s reduction of the French regions from 22 to 13, such as Alsace, Lorraine and Picardie which also no longer exist on the map.
