Interesting Country Facts (France)

France is the largest nation in Western Europe, with countries like Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Andorra and Monaco sharing its boundary. Paris, its capital, is known worldwide for its couture fashion houses, classical art museums including the Louvre and monuments like the Eiffel Tower.

Fast Facts about France

1. France’s official name is the French Republic (République Française). It became a republic in 1792, after centuries of royal rule, as a result of the French Revolution. The Revolution started with the storming of the Bastille fortress on 14th July 1789, an event that is celebrated every year all over France on Bastille Day.

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2. France is sometimes called ‘the hexagon’. Because of its six-sided shape, France is sometimes referred to as l’hexagone.

3. French is the official language and the first language of 88 percent of the population. However, there are various indigenous regional dialects and languages, such as Alsacian, Basque, Breton, Catalan, Occitan and Flemish. About 1 million French people living near the border with Italy speak Italian.

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4. France is the largest European country in terms of land area after Russia and Ukraine.

5. France has an impressive early childhood education system

6. Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the ruling French Directoire (Directory) in 1799 and, by referendum, declared himself First Consul for life. His birthday became a national holiday, and in 1804, Pope Pius VII crowned him emperor in Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral. It is illegal to name a cat Napoleon in France.

7. In France, you can legally marry a deceased person. It’s against the law to take pictures of police officers and police vehicles.

8. More than 80 percent of the population are Roman Catholic. Some 5–10 percent are Muslim, 2 percent are Protestant, 1 percent are Jewish – and 4 percent are not affiliated to any religion.

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9. France is the world’s most popular tourist destination and most visited country. Some 83 million visitors arrived in France in 2012, according to the World Tourism Organisation.

10. April Fool’s Day in France apparently stems back to the 16th century.  This April 1st tradition is supposed to have started in the 16th century when King Charles XIV of France changed the calendar and those who continued to celebrate the end of the New Year at the end of March were ridiculed as fools.