France (French)
Where does "France" come from?
The name France reflects the country's origins as the land of the Franks, a Germanic tribe whose name likely stems from the Proto-Germanic word for a javelin or spear. This tribal name was adopted into Late Latin as Francia, which evolved through Old and Middle French into the modern name for the nation. It shares a common naming pattern with other regions where a group is identified by their preferred weapon, much like the Saxons and their daggers.
Ancestors
- France (Middle French)
- France (Old French)
- Francia (Latin)
Cognates and doublets
- Francie (French)
Descendants and derived words
- Fwans (Antillean Creole)
- Frañs (Breton)
- ပြင်သစ် (Burmese)
- Frans (Finnish)
- faire une carte de France (French)
- françafricain (French)
- Françafrique (French)
- français (French)
- français (French)
- Français (French)
- Marie-France (French)
- melon de France (French)
Updated May 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris