Why are French called Frogs?

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Why are French called Frogs?

The French are related with the name frog. The frog symbol was earlier on the banner of Emperor Charlemagne. His banner consisted of three toads on it. The English and Welsh visualized them as frogs. Charlemagne was a Roman emperor reigning between 800 AD and 814 AD. After that, the coat of arms of Charlemagne showed the half body of an eagle which is black. This was used as a symbol of German emperors. Fleur-de-lis images were the symbol of France emperors and they were present on their shields. They used to resemble the frogs but are not frogs carved or painted on their armory.

This name of ‘frog, started to exist after the World War I and not any time before that. There is one opinion which tells that the coat of the French army officers was covered using small wood pieces attached to a tail which are named as ‘frogs,. This might have been the start for the name frog. There is another anecdote related to this, way back in the 18th century. At that time, Paris was surrounded by swamps and the Parisians were called as frogs because they were surrounded by swamps. After some time, the entire French people were generally referred to as frogs.

Another story says that the American soldiers consider the French soldiers as frogs from World War II, as the French used to eat frog legs and they used to hide properly when camouflaged. It is also believed that a frog was on the Flag of the French even before the Fleur-de-lis was taken over in its place when King Clovis was ruling.

The other reason why the French are called frogs is that they prefer to eat frogs. They have them as a delicious item in their menu by the name Grenouille. Apart from this, it is known that the Frankish kings, according to the book ,’Holy Blood Holy Grail, had both bees and frogs on their royal robes and they have also been identified at the graves of the Clovis and Sons in France. So, the Frankish kings were called frogs before and it continued since then.

Author: Hari M

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