Every day, in "Historically yours", Stéphane Bern suggests discovering the origins of expressions that we use on a daily basis without necessarily knowing where they come from.
Tuesday, the host looks at the origin of "average Beijing", which we owe mainly to the Occitan language.
The faithful listeners or readers of Europe 1 are undoubtedly not "average pekins". This slang term designates with a touch of condescension ordinary people, whatever. In Historically your, Stéphane Bern explains Tuesday where this phrase comes from. If a connection with the Chinese capital is not to be excluded, the origin of the word, pequin, - and not Beijing - and of the expression which results from it is rather to be sought on the side of Occitania.
An Occitan word taken up by the army
Péquin with a Q comes from Occitan which meant small, puny.
The term gave
pequeño
in Spanish
and by extension most certainly péquenaud in French.
The word pequin was also used by the military.
It was a slang expression used in the big mute to refer to all the people who were not engaged in the army.
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An anecdote is circulating on this subject.
The Marshal of the Empire Augereau arrives one day at a meeting late and as an excuse declares that he must have spoken with a péquin.
Before the round eyes of the audience, he explains that a pequin designates all those who are not military.
And Talleyrand, who was present, replied: "Well, we call all that is not civilian military".
A play on words at the feast of the Federation
On July 14, 1790, the feast of the Federation was held on the Champs de Mars.
Within the ceremony there are military delegates but also civilian delegates from the French cantons.
We imagine that the play on words that makes the link with China may have arisen at this time: Beijing, Canton, China, Beijing.
The circle is complete.
Talleyrand, known for his wit, also gave rise to this quote from another time, fortunately bypassed: "Women sometimes forgive those who abrupt an opportunity, but never those who miss it".