 Fañch, born 11 mai 2017 in Quimper (Finistère). (photo credit: Florence Malésieux / FRANCE 3) A young couple from Brittany, France could never have imagined the breton name they'd chosen for their newborn would create such a judicial firestorm. The use of the name "Fañch" was banned in September by a tribunal in Quimper stating that the letter "ñ" was incompatible with French law. A decision that has prompted the Regional Council of Brittany to petition the Minister of Justice of France to allow the name. Brittany, the western most peninsula of France, has long had a tradition of un-French sounding names and places names due to the extensive use of the Breton, a celtic language native to the area. French policing of names has lighted since a court ruling in the 1966 allowing Breton names to be officially used administratively. The court ruling in Quimper on September 13th was surprising to many as Breton names have become very popular throughout Brittany. The bewildering ruling forbid the use of the letter ñ stating, ""would be tantamount to breaking the will of our rule of law to maintain the unity of the country and equality without distinction of origin"*. The letter ñ is common in Breton language but also Spanish, Basque, Galicien, Asturien, Guarani, Tagalog, Hassanya, and Wolof. The court's ruling also stated that ñ was not part of the French language, a reason for it not being used in names. A theory debunked a few days later by Bernez Rouz, President of the Culture Council of Brittany, when he presented numerous official French documents highlighting the use of the letter ñ for centuries, proving it in fact to be part of French orthographic tradition. The Region Council of Brittany voted this week to solicit the Minister of Justice to ask for the authorization of the diacritical sign and stating that its use in no way threatens the national unity of France. The September 13th court decision is currently being appealed but the affair seems to have many in France questioning why only one official language is recognized in a Republic.where many others are native to the country.
7 Comments
10/22/2017 07:37:06 am
Mec Vannin believes that parents should be allowed to choose the names of their children. It is quite ridiculous to say this cannot be so. I have heard many people called by that name in Brittany, and many other Breton names used too. The French centralist state has gone too far this time and I think it would be in their best interest to allow the name or they will create more resistance from the Breton people.
Ruth Ann Raftery
10/22/2017 12:56:03 pm
This is bizarre—Anyone with a high school history book in their possession knows that what is now France was Gaul before the Romans marched in, and that the people then spoke a Gaelic dialect. It wasn't until the invasion of the Germanic Francs that the common language was changed, or that the country became France. The French people themselves are a mix of Gaels, Romans, Francs, Normans, and whatever else we don't have as clear records on. The English, Irish Welsh and Scots are to different degrees the same aggregation, Anyway, parents should be allowed to name their children whatever they wish. No doubt some of them have grandfathers named Enrico, Horst, Julius, etc. who will want to be honored.
Corvus
10/22/2017 11:01:39 pm
Anyone making claims about having history books should know that the Gaulish language is in a Celtic group distinct to the one Gaelic is in, and that they can't understand each other. That "Gaelic" isn't synonym of "Celtic", and that it only concerns to those communities who speak a variation, namely Irish, Scottish and Manx. And also that Breton language doesn't come from Gaulish but from insular Brythonic languages (Welsh and Cornish) that were brought to Britanny by people from the islands.
Brennos
10/26/2017 12:31:51 pm
Not Gaelic. Gaulish was a Brythonic tongue, Gaelic is not. Modern Breton has more in common with Welsh and Cornish than it does Irish, Manx or Scottish Gaelic.
William Vondersmith
2/29/2020 06:20:11 pm
Dear, dear Ruth Ann ... You state your case so well, but your faith in today's public high school history curriculum is somewhat optimistic. I've tried to contact you in California, but no luck. I hope you accept my greetings now, and please email me directly. God bless and keep you. Bill (Duke) V, [email protected]
Garry Bryant
10/22/2017 04:53:01 pm
Okay France, you're going to far with this political correctness (PC). STOP before it becomes like America in the PC arena, before it is too late.
Les Jones
12/8/2017 09:01:30 am
Breton - Not native to Brittany but a hybrid and now insular language - Britons escaping invaders. Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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