Origins of Paris : where does this name come from ?

Ah, Paris! The city of love, lights, and a baffling number of dog parks. But have you ever paused while sipping your café au lait and wondered, “Why on earth is this place called Paris?”

Let’s embark on a time travel along the Seine to find the answer.

It’s all about the tribe

Rewind to around 3rd century BC. No Eiffel Tower, no croissants – just a bunch of folks known as the Parisii.

These were a Celtic Iron Age tribe, and not particularly known for their fashion sense, but still, they had other things on their minds, like surviving and picking the perfect spot for a settlement.

This tribe settled on what we now call the Île de la Cité, probably because the fishing was great, and who doesn’t love a waterfront view ?

Roman holiday: Lutetia Parisiorum

Fast forward to 52 BC, and here come the Romans. They took a liking to this little Celtic settlement and called it “Lutetia Parisiorum.”

The name of the city is attested for the first time by Julius Caesar himself, in the middle of the 1st century BC, in « The Gallic Wars » , in the form Lutecia or Lutetia (depending on the manuscripts) when visiting the area in order to include it in the Roman empire…

Why Lutetia ? Well, as you can see from Google Translate, Lutetia means clay… exactly the material find you still find in the deep waters of the Seine today (along with other more modern funky garbage, but that’s another story) – You see, Romans were pretty literal folks. Or they had Google Translate installed on their chariots.

Skipping through the middle ages: from Lutetia to Paris

As we skip through the Middle Ages, the name Lutetia was pretty much dropped like a bad habit, and ‘Paris’ became the go-to name.

Why? Well, brevity is the soul of wit, or so they say. It’s like choosing between calling your friend Alexander or just Alex.

By the way, French Children all know about the Lutece thing, because one of our most popular comics is built around the funny adventures of Asterix, a witty gallic warrior and his friend Obelix, who often travel to Lutece to trick the romans, and sometimes, Caesar himself (I’m not adding an image of these characters here because the publisher is very strict regarding copyright…).

Voilà ! modern day Paris

Since then, Paris has remained Paris. It’s shorter, sweeter, and let’s face it, easier to fit on a souvenir keychain. From a small tribe to an empire, to a buzzing metropolis, Paris has certainly had a journey worthy of the name.

More than just a name

So, there you have it! The next time you find yourself wandering the charming streets of Paris, take a moment to appreciate the history in its name.

A name that has seen empires rise and fall of empires, survived fashion faux pas, and emerged as a beacon of culture, art, and ridiculously delicious pastries. And as your next destination.

Paris around the World

You have to be careful : there are no less than 48 cities named Paris around the globe, according to Wikipedia, and your Navigo Card will not work there. Here is the (rather monotonous) list of them all : 

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_des_villes_s%27appelant_Paris

Denmark

– Paris, Lemvig, Denmark (da)

UNITED STATES

– Paris (Texas, 24,476 inhabitants in 2020): which gave its name to the film Paris, Texas by Wim Wenders.
– Paris (Tennessee, 10,316 inhabitants in 2020): there is a replica of the Eiffel Tower (Paris, Tennessee)
– Paris (Kentucky, 10,171 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (Illinois, 8,291 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (Maine, 5,183 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (New York, 4,332 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (Arkansas, 3,176 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (Kenosha County, Wisconsin, population 1,397 in 2020)
– Paris (Missouri, 1,161 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris (Grant County, Wisconsin, population 655 in 2020)
– Paris (Idaho, 541 inhabitants in 2020)
– Paris is the former name of Beresford (South Dakota)
– Paris, Indiana
– Paris, Iowa
– Paris, Michigan
– Paris, Mississippi
– Paris (Stark County, Ohio)
– Paris, Pennsylvania
– Paris (Virginia)
We also find cities where Paris is only  part of the name:
– South Paris (Maine)
– West Paris (Maine)
– St. Paris, Ohio

Canada

– Paris (Ontario, 11,763 inhabitants in 2011)
– Paris (Yukon, now a ghost town)

Gabon

– Paris (Moyen-Ogooué)

Panama

– Paris (Panama) (es) locality in the district of Parita in the province of Herrera, 1,070 inhabitants.

Russia

– Parij (Chelyabinsk oblast): there is a replica of the Eiffel Tower.
– Paris (ru) (Bashkiria).

Kiribati

– Paris: abandoned village on Christmas Island in the middle of the Pacific, there is also the city of London and Poland.

Sweden

– Paris och Wien (sv) (Stockholm County)

Ukraine

– Vesely (Boudjak, Bessarabia), formerly called Paris: formerly populated by German settlers.

That’s it for today.