mazing Facts About France
France In English : France ‘ France ‘ (officially the French Republic ‘ French Republic ‘) is a country located in the continent of Western Europe. Surrounded by sea on three sides, many parts of this country are in other parts of the world.
The culture, historical heritage and tourist destination of France has always been the center of attraction for people from all over the world. The fashion, music, art, food here are world famous. It is the most visited country in the world.
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Today in this article we are providing interesting information about France. Read 101 Interesting Facts About France ( 101 Interesting Facts About France ):
01-10 Interesting Facts About France
The word “France” is derived from the Latin word ‘ Francia ‘. Which literally means – Land of Franks .
2. At one stage of history, 8% of the world’s land was occupied by France.
3. France is one of the 5 permanent members of the European Union . In 1993, France became a founding member of the European Union, a grouping of 28 countries to promote peace, democracy and economic stability.
4. The official language of France is French . Despite this, people who speak French are more in Africa than in France .
5. Out of all the countries celebrating Independence Day , 26 countries have become independent from France .
6. Between 1814 and 1830, the official flag of the Kingdom of France was plain white without any colours, emblems and borders. The current flag of France was created in 1794 during the French Revolution . This flag is designed as a tricolor with vertical stripes of blue, white and red.
7. The legal system of France ( French Civil Code ) is mainly based on the Napoleonic Code introduced by Napoleon Bonaparte , which was created in the year 1804 after the French Revolution.
8. The youngest French President is Emmanuel Macron , who became the President of France only on 14 May 2017 at the age of 39 .
9. The official motto of the French Republic was “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” (“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”) first popularized during the French Revolution of 1789.
10. France has 12 time zones , which is the most in any country in the world.
11-20 Interesting Facts About France
11. France has the third largest percentage of migrants in the world . The United States of America is in the first place and Canada is on the second . A large number of immigrants came mainly from the former colonies of France.
12. ‘ Gallic rooster ‘ is the national animal of France . It is also marked on stamps, coins and even the official seal of the French Republic.
13. Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in France . Its height is 15,774 feet above sea level. It is part of the French Alps mountain range.
14. The longest river in France is the Loire . Its length is 634 miles. It is the 171st longest river in the world. It irrigates an area of 117054 square kilometers of France.
15. The Guinness Book of World Records for the world’s oldest person is in the name of a French woman named Jeanne Calment, who lived for 122 years and 164 days (1875–1997).
16. The most Nobel Prize in Literature has been won by French litterateurs.
17. The record for writing the world’s longest novel is in the name of French writer Marcel Proust . The world’s longest novel ” Remembrance of Things Past ” written by him has 3000 pages. It is divided into 13 sections and contains thousands of characters.
18. In France it is illegal to name the pig “Napoleon” .
19. The French National Anthem ” La Marseillaise ” was written in 1792 and was officially declared the national anthem in 1795.
20. The urban population of France far exceeds the rural population. Here the urban population is 85% as against the rural 15%.
21-30 Interesting Facts About
21. The number of people who believe in religion is very less in France. Here out of the total population, 29% of the population are atheists and 63% of the population does not believe in any religion. Only 8% of the population believes in religion.
22. Life expectancy of men in France is 78 years, while that of women is 84 years.
23. The average person in France sleeps 8.83 hours per day, which is the highest in the developed world.
24. The percentage of disability in France is very high. Here 1 out of every 10 people is disabled.
25. The French government rewards such parents, who have brought up 4 or more children by giving them good values. This award is being given from 26 May 1920.
26. Children’s beauty pageants are banned in France. Holding it can lead to up to 2 years in prison and a fine of €30,000.
27. It was illegal for women to wear pants in Paris for 214 years . This law was abolished in the year 2012.
28. Even after being famous for romance all over the world, it is illegal for lovers to kiss on railway platforms in France. In this regard, a law was made in France in the year 1910.
29. It is illegal in France to publish photographs of handcuffed suspects, as they are not considered guilty until proven.
30. It is illegal in France to take photographs of police officers or their vehicles, even in the background.
10-20 Interesting Facts About France
31. Etiquette matters a lot in France. So much so that if you don’t say “hello” and “please” at the coffee shop, the price of the coffee is raised. In this way, it is costly to not observe etiquette here.
32. In France, anyone over the age of 14 can drive a VSP car without a license.
33. ‘ April Fool ‘ Day, which is celebrated as ‘Fool’s Day’ all over the world, was started in France in 1582.
34. Due to the Second World War, the first ‘Cannes Film Festival’ to be held in France was canceled after the screening of just one film.
35. France is the first country in the world to ban the dumping of unsold food items by supermarkets. This ban has been in place since February 2016. Since then, unsold edible food items are donated or given to food banks.
36. France has banned free refills in fast food restaurants in the year 2015 with the aim of reducing obesity.
37. At least 40% of the music played on private radio stations in France must be French music. Of this 40% quota of French music, 50% of the music should not be older than 6 months.
38. An average of two cook/cooking books are published every day in France.
39. About 96% of high schools in France have condom vending machines.
40. To get a license to drive a taxi in Paris, the capital of France , about 200,000 euros have to be paid.
41-50 Interesting Information About France
41. Marriage is legally possible even with a dead person in France. The purpose of making this system is to give legal rights to those children whose father died before marrying their mother.
42. From 1 January 2017, every person in France has automatically become an organ-donor. If he does not want to donate his organs, then he has to sign in the ‘ National Rejection Register ‘, which is checked by the team of doctors before donating the organs of the deceased. This system is also applicable in Spain ( Sapin ), Belgium , Portugal ( Portugal ).
43. Before 1965, French women were not allowed to work outside without the permission of their husbands. In 1965, this right was granted to women by the French government.
44. Even before 1964, French women were not allowed to open bank accounts without the permission of their husbands.
45. The tradition of wearing a white wedding suit on the occasion of marriage in France is going on since the year 1499.
46. Potato cultivation was banned in France between the years 1748 and 1772. It was believed that the consumption of potatoes causes leprosy.
47. France is the top country in the world to generate electricity using nuclear energy . Here 71.6% (379.1 TWh) of the total electricity produced 519.4 TWh is produced from nuclear power.
48. Paris, the capital of France, is the first capital of Western countries, where the mayor of African origin was appointed. In the year 1879, ‘Severiano de Heredia’ of African origin was appointed mayor of Paris.
49. The first violence of the French Revolution of 1789 took place at a luxury wallpaper factory.
50. The world famous museum ‘Louvre’ of France was originally built in the year 1190 as a defense against the vicious Viking raids of that time.
51-60 Interesting Facts About France
51. Too many rules and regulations of the game sometimes spoil the fun of the game. But this is not the case with the traditional French ball game ‘ boules ‘. The rule book of this interesting game is 70-page long.
52. The French Open, one of the four “Grand Slam” events of tennis, is played each year on a clay court at the Roland Garros Stadium in Paris.
53. The world’s most famous cycle race ‘ Tour de France ‘ started in the year 1903 in France. This multiple-stage bicycle race was started by a French journalist and cyclist named Henri Desgranges with the aim of promoting his newspaper.
54. France looks like a hexagon in shape. Therefore it is also called ‘the hexagon’.
55. Paris , the capital of France, was originally a Roman city, which was known as “Lutetia”.
56. There are 44 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in France .
57. The Louvre Museum in Paris attracts the most tourists from all over the world. It is the most visited museum in the world. The number of tourists visiting here is more than 9 million annually.
58. The world famous MonaLisa Painting is in the Louvre Museum in Paris .
59. The Statue of Liberty was a gift given by the people of France to the United States of America . It was built by Gustave Eiffel , who also built the Eiffel Tower .
60. Even after being popular around the world, the Eiffel Tower is not the most visited monument in the city of Paris. This honor goes to the ‘ Cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris ‘ located in Paris .
61-70 Interesting France Information
61. The world’s first solar panel road is in France. In the year 2016, this road, called the 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) long ‘ Wattway ‘ located in Normandy Village , was inaugurated. 2800 Photovoltaic Panels are installed in this road.
62. There is such a point in the city of Paris, from which the distance of all the roads of France can be measured. The name of this point is ‘ zero point ‘. This point is marked with an octagonal plate made of bronze. It is set on the sidewalk near the main entrance of Notre Dame Cathedral .
63. Despite the heavy traffic there is only one “ Stop Sign ” in the entire city of Paris.
64. The name of the oldest bridge in France is “New Bridge”. This bridge is located in Paris and its French name is “Pont Neuf” , which means “new bridge”.
65. The busiest railway station in Europe is the ‘ Paris Gare du Nord ‘ railway station of Paris, the capital of France. 190 million passengers pass through this station every year.
66. The Provence region of France is known for its lavender fields. During the spring the region is a paradise for tourists who wish to see the beautiful purple fields and enjoy the wonderful scent.
67. Below the main thoroughfare and avenues of southern Paris are many graves, where the remains of more than 6 million people are buried.
68. France is also far ahead in terms of inventions. The parachutes, hot air balloons, motion picture cameras, inflatable tires for bicycles and cars were all invented in France.
69. The cell phone camera was invented in France . It was invented by Philippe Kahn in the year 1997 .
70. Louis Pasteur , the scientist who invented the process of pasteurization , was of French origin.
71-80 Interesting Facts
71. The Metric System of Weights and Measures was developed in France in the year 1793 during the French Revolution.
72. The first country in the world to introduce the concept of license plates for automobiles is France , which introduced this concept in 1893.
73. The world ‘s first artificial heart transplant was performed in Paris in December 2013 .
74. In 1795, Napoleon Bonaparte announced a 12,000-franc prize to anyone who found a way to preserve food and make it portable. A confectioner from Paris experimented for 15 years and won this award.
75. France is the second largest producer of wine in the world (as per 2019 statistics). Every year 7-8 billion bottles of wine are produced here. Many of these wines are sold internationally at hefty prices, while the rest are consumed locally in the country. (The largest producer of wine is Italy.) Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Loire and Provence are the names of the wine producing regions of France.
76. Champagne is produced only in a specific ‘Champagne region’ of France. Wine produced in another region is not called ‘Champagne’.
77. Consumption of alcohol is very high in France. Every year 11.2 billion glasses of wine are drunk here.
78. There are more than 1,500 bike stations in Paris. You can rent a bike from any of these stations at the cost of one euro for a day and return the bike at any other station.
79. Eating horses and rabbits is quite common in France. You can easily find these items on restaurant menus.
80. France is one of the countries where beer is served at McDonald ‘s . The other countries are: Germany , Austria , Spain and the Netherlands .
81-90 Facts
81. French Fries and French Toast are not French inventions.
82. In France, wine is free with every meal and beer is considered a luxury.
83. There is a man in Paris – Jim Haynes, who has been inviting strangers to dinner every weekday for the past 30 years.
84. Every person in France eats an average of 500 snails every year.
85. French is an official language in several countries, including: Canada , Switzerland , Congo and Luxembourg . It is also the second most widely read language after English, and is the mother tongue of more than 75 million people worldwide.
86. French was the official language of England for more than 300 years .
87. The word “ Entrepreneur ” originated in 13th century France. It is derived from the word ‘enterprendre’, which meant ‘to do something’
88. Online service was being provided in France many years before the World Wide Web . From the year 1980, the ‘Minitel’ service in France gave users access to online shopping, search engines, porn and message boards. The service had grown to 25 million users in the 90s, joining more than 23,000 services.
89. The shortest reign in history was that of ‘King Louis XIX’ , which lasted only 20 minutes.
90. The French capital Paris is known as the “ City of Light ”. The city has 296 illuminated sites, including bridges, churches, fountains, hotels and national buildings.
91-101 Interesting Facts
91. French President ‘Charles de Gaulle’ is the person who survived the most assassination attempts in the world. Attempts were made to kill him 32 times, but fortunately he survived each time. Because of this, his name is also recorded in the ‘Guinness Book of World Records’ .
92. There was also a king in France, who was named king only 5 months before his birth. They were – King John-I ( King Jhon-I ). But unfortunately after birth, he was able to survive only 5 days.
93. King Louis XIV of France had such a coat, which had 123 buttons of diamonds.
94. The only one to die after a tennis match was King Louis X of France , who died in 1316 after an exhausting game of tennis. After the match he drank a large amount of cold wine and later died of pneumonia or pleurisy.
95. The names of some villages in France are very strange. Here 6 villages are called ‘Silly’, 12 villages are called ‘Billy’ and two are called ‘Prat’.
96. The Embassy of Japan in France has a 24-hour helpline facility for citizens of their country who are facing any kind of problem due to cultural differences in France.
97. The best military record in Europe belongs to the French Army . Of the 168 battles fought since 387 BC, France has won 109 and lost 49. 10 battles have been fruitless.
98. One-quarter of French men aged 18 to 27 were killed during the First World War.
99. During World War II, during Hitler ‘s visit to the Eiffel Tower , all the elevator cables were cut by the French, so that Hitler was forced to climb the stairs to enjoy the view from the top. .
100. During the Second World War , French Jews were given Muslim identity cards by a mosque in Paris to save their lives from the Nazis.
101. If a non-French person serving in the French Foreign Legion is injured while defending France, he becomes eligible to apply for French citizenship. Due to the blood shed by him for the country, he is considered French.
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