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Source: Wikiwand: Name of the Franks

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Titre	Wikiwand: Name of the Franks

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Flavius RICHOMERES of Toxandria Consul of the Roman Empire CR002
DAGOBERT II of the Sicambrian Franks
CHILDRICH I König der salischen Franken FK01

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The name of the Franks (Latin "Franci") and the derived names of "'Francia" and "Franconia" (and the adjectives "Frankish" and "Franconian") are derived from the name given to a Germanic tribal confederation that emerged in the 3rd century. The Frankish Empire rose to the main successor of Roman imperial power in Western Europe, and as a result, the Franks ultimately gave their name to both the kingdom of France, and to Franconia, one of the stem duchies of the Holy Roman Empire. Etymology It is traditionally assumed that Frank comes from the Germanic word for "javelin" (such as in Old English "franca" or Old Norse "frakka," Latinized francisca "throwing axe"), analogous to the name of the Saxons, which appears to derive from Proto-Germanic"*sahsa" - 'knife, dagger, short sword'. Words in other Germanic languages meaning "bold" or "fierce" (Middle Dutch "vrac," Old English "frǣc and Old Norwegian "frakkr"), may also be significant. Eumenius addressed the Franks in the matter of the execution of Frankish prisoners in the circus at Trier by Constantine I in 306 and certain other measures: "Ubi nunc est illa ferocia? Ubi semper infida mobilitas?" ("Where now is that famed ferocity of yours, that ever untrustworthy fickleness?"). "Feroces" was used often to describe the Franks. Contemporary definitions of Frankish ethnicity vary both by period and point of view. In a tradition going back to the 7th-century Chronicle of Fredegar, the name of the Franks is taken from Francio, one of the Germanic kings of Sicambri, c. 61 BCE, whose dominion extended all along those lands immediately joining the west-bank of the Rhine River, as far as Strasbourg and Belgium. This nation is also explicitly mentioned by Julius Caesar in his "Notebooks on the Gallic War" ("Commentarii de Bello Gallico"). Writing in 2009, Professor Christopher Wickham pointed out that "the word 'Frankish' quickly ceased to have an exclusive ethnic connotation. North of the Loire everyone seems to have been considered a Frank by the mid-seventh century at the latest; Romaniwere essentially the inhabitants of Aquitaine after that." On the other hand, a formulary written by Marculf about AD 700 described a continuation of national identities within a mixed population when it stated that "all the peoples who dwell [in the official's province], Franks, Romans, Burgundians, and those of other nations, live ... according to their law and their custom." Adjective frank "free" The Middle English adjective "frank" "free, liberal, generous" was adopted in c. 1300 from Old French "franc" "free (not servile)," from Medieval Latin "francus" "free, at liberty," as a noun "a freeman, a Frank." The generalized meaning of "freeman" and adjectival "free" developed because under Frankish rule in Gaul, only Franks were free of taxation. The Gallo-Roman population held a lower rank in Frankish society. "Salic law" was the Germanic law codified in the early 6th century to apply to Franks within the Frankish Empire. The legal system in Francia tried every man according to the law of his ownrace, the Gallo-Roman subject population fell under separate laws, and yet separate laws concerned the interaction between Franks (freemen) and Gallo-Roman subjects. The most notable of these are the "Lex Romana Visigothorum" or "Breviary of Alaric" (506), the "Lex Romana Curiensis" and the "Romana Burgundionum." This led to obvious complications, as expressed by Agobard of Lyons, who was pleading for a unified legal system in the Frankish Empire, "Of five men sitting or walking together none will have the same law as his fellow." The Modern French adjective "franc" (feminine "franche," adverb "franchement") still means "free, tax-exempt" as well as "frank, outspoken". It is seen in the name of Franche-Comté, the area of the Free County of Burgundy (982–1678), so named because its sovereign had the unusual title of "free count" ("Freigraf," or "franc comte"). "Franklin" ("fraunclein") was the Anglo-Norman term for a free landowner not of noble birth, giving rise to the given name Franklin and eventually the surname. Francia (France) Main article: Name of France The name of France directly continues Latin "Francia," originally applied to the entire Frankish Empire. Under the reign of the Franks' Kings Clovis I, Charles Martel, Pepin the Short, and Charlemagne, the country was known as Kingdom of Franks or Francia. At the Treaty of Verdun in 843, the Frankish Empire was divided in three parts: West Francia ("Francia Occidentalis"), Middle Francia and East Francia ("Francia Orientalis"). The rulers of "Francia Orientalis," who soon claimed the imperial title and wanted to reunify the Frankish Empire, dropped the name "Francia Orientalis" and called their realm the Holy Roman Empire (see History of Germany). The kings of "Francia Occidentalis" successfully opposed this claim and managed to preserve "Francia Occidentalis" as an independent kingdom, distinct from the Holy Roman Empire. The Battle of Bouvines in 1214 definitively marked the end of the efforts by the Holy Roman Empire to reunify the old Frankish Empire by conquering France. Since the name "Francia Orientalis" had disappeared, there arose the habit to refer to "Francia Occidentalis" as "Francia" only, from which the word France is derived. The French state has been in continuous existence since 843 (except for a brief interruption in 885-887), with an unbroken line of heads of states since the first king of "Francia Occidentalis" (Charles the Bald) to the current president of the French Republic. Noticeably, in German, France is still called "Frankreich," which literally means "'Reich' (empire) of the Franks." In order to distinguish it from the Frankish Empire of Charlemagne, France is called "Frankreich," while the Frankish Empire is called "Frankenreich." In most of the Germanic languages, France is known as the historical "Land of the Franks," for example, "Frankreich" (Reich of the Franks) in German, Frankrijk (Rijk of the Franks) in Dutch, "Frankrike" (Rike of the Franks) in Swedish and Norwegian, "Frankrig" in Danish. In a more restricted meaning, "France" refers specifically to the province of Île-de-France (with Paris at its centre) which historically was the heart of the royal demesne. This meaning is found in some geographic names, such as French brie ("Brie française") and French Vexin ("Vexin français"). French Brie, the area where the famous Brie cheese is produced, is the part of Brie that was annexed to the royal demesne, as opposed to Champagne Brie ("Brie champenoise") which was annexed by Champagne. Likewise, French Vexin was the part of Vexin inside Île-de-France, as opposed to Norman Vexin ("Vexin normand") which was inside Normandy. This meaning is also found in the name of the French language ("langue française"), whose literal meaning is "language of Île-de-France". It is not until the 19th and 20th centuries that the language of Île-de-France indeed became the language of the whole country France. In modern French, the French language is called "le français," while the old language of Île-de-France is called by the name applied to it according to a 19th-century theory on the origin of the French language - "le francien." Franconia Further information: Franconia and Rhenish Franconia "Franconia" became the Latin name of East Francia, derived from the German name "Franken" "realm of the Franks," "Franconia" was introduced as a synonym of "Francia orientalis" by the 12th century (Annalista Saxo), and came to be used of the Duchy of Franconia as it stood during the 9th and 10th centuries, divided Franconia during the later medieval period, and the Franconian Circle of the early modern period. Franconian vs. Frankish The division made between "Franconia" and "Francia" for German and French territories of the former Frankish Empire leads to terminological difficulties in English. " English has the two adjectives "Franconian" and "Frankish" translating what in Dutch and German is expressed by a single adjective ("frankisch" and "fränkisch," respectively). "Franconian" translates German "fränkisch" when referring to the "Franconia" within the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th century onward, while Frankish tends to refer to the period of the unified Frankish realm, during the 5th to 9th centuries. But there are exceptions, most notably in the context of linguistics, where the term Franconian languages translates German "fränkische Sprachen," French "Langues franciques." This group of dialects has a complicated history due to the geographical spreadof the High German consonant shift as it developed during the medieval period. Dutch remained unaffected by the consonant shift while Central and Rhenish and High Franconian form a dialect continuum within High German. Since these dialects are all derived from the early medieval language of the Franks, linguistic terminology in English varies between the names "Frankish" and "Franconian," the Germanic language of Merowingian Francia being variously known as "Old Frankish," "Old Franconian" or simply "Frankish." Old Franconian The German term "altfränkisch" as it was introduced in the mid 19th century did not refer to the early medieval period, but was used as a nostalgic term for "old-timey" Franconia (compare Old English vs. Olde England). This was rendered into English as "Old Franconian," with 19th-century sources talking about Old Franconian towns, songs, people, etc. But the same term "altfränkisch" came to be used of the Frankish language of the Merovingian period. Gustave Solling's "Diutiska" (1863) used the adjective "Franconian" in reference to the Merowingian period, and "Old Franconian" for the language of the Pledge of Charles the Bald.[15] In 1890 Ernest Adams defined "Old Franconian" as an Old High German dialect spoken on the middle and upper Rhine; i.e., it went beyond the limits of Franconia to comprise also the dialect continuum ..

The name of the Franks (Latin "Franci") and the derived names of "'Francia" and "Franconia" (and the adjectives "Frankish" and "Franconian") are derived from the name given to a Germanic tribal confederation that emerged in the 3rd century.

The Frankish Empire rose to the main successor of Roman imperial power in Western Europe, and as a result, the Franks ultimately gave their name to both the kingdom of France, and to Franconia, one of the stem duchies of the Holy Roman Empire.

Etymology
It is traditionally assumed that Frank comes from the Germanic word for "javelin" (such as in Old English "franca" or Old Norse "frakka," Latinized francisca "throwing axe"), analogous to the name of the Saxons, which appears to derive from Proto-Germanic"*sahsa" - 'knife, dagger, short sword'.

Words in other Germanic languages meaning "bold" or "fierce" (Middle Dutch "vrac," Old English "frǣc and Old Norwegian "frakkr"), may also be significant. Eumenius addressed the Franks in the matter of the execution of Frankish prisoners in the circus at Trier by Constantine I in 306 and certain other measures: "Ubi nunc est illa ferocia? Ubi semper infida mobilitas?" ("Where now is that famed ferocity of yours, that ever untrustworthy fickleness?"). "Feroces" was used often to describe the Franks. Contemporary definitions of Frankish ethnicity vary both by period and point of view.

In a tradition going back to the 7th-century Chronicle of Fredegar, the name of the Franks is taken from Francio, one of the Germanic kings of Sicambri, c. 61 BCE, whose dominion extended all along those lands immediately joining the west-bank of the Rhine River, as far as Strasbourg and Belgium. This nation is also explicitly mentioned by Julius Caesar in his "Notebooks on the Gallic War" ("Commentarii de Bello Gallico").

Writing in 2009, Professor Christopher Wickham pointed out that "the word 'Frankish' quickly ceased to have an exclusive ethnic connotation. North of the Loire everyone seems to have been considered a Frank by the mid-seventh century at the latest; Romaniwere essentially the inhabitants of Aquitaine after that." On the other hand, a formulary written by Marculf about AD 700 described a continuation of national identities within a mixed population when it stated that "all the peoples who dwell [in the official's province], Franks, Romans, Burgundians, and those of other nations, live ... according to their law and their custom."

Adjective frank "free"
The Middle English adjective "frank" "free, liberal, generous" was adopted in c. 1300 from Old French "franc" "free (not servile)," from Medieval Latin "francus" "free, at liberty," as a noun "a freeman, a Frank." The generalized meaning of "freeman" and adjectival "free" developed because under Frankish rule in Gaul, only Franks were free of taxation.

The Gallo-Roman population held a lower rank in Frankish society. "Salic law" was the Germanic law codified in the early 6th century to apply to Franks within the Frankish Empire. The legal system in Francia tried every man according to the law of his ownrace, the Gallo-Roman subject population fell under separate laws, and yet separate laws concerned the interaction between Franks (freemen) and Gallo-Roman subjects. The most notable of these are the "Lex Romana Visigothorum" or "Breviary of Alaric" (506), the "Lex Romana Curiensis" and the "Romana Burgundionum." This led to obvious complications, as expressed by Agobard of Lyons, who was pleading for a unified legal system in the Frankish Empire, "Of five men sitting or walking together none will have the same law as his fellow."

The Modern French adjective "franc" (feminine "franche," adverb "franchement") still means "free, tax-exempt" as well as "frank, outspoken". It is seen in the name of Franche-Comté, the area of the Free County of Burgundy (982–1678), so named because its sovereign had the unusual title of "free count" ("Freigraf," or "franc comte").

"Franklin" ("fraunclein") was the Anglo-Norman term for a free landowner not of noble birth, giving rise to the given name Franklin and eventually the surname.

Francia (France)
Main article: Name of France

The name of France directly continues Latin "Francia," originally applied to the entire Frankish Empire. Under the reign of the Franks' Kings Clovis I, Charles Martel, Pepin the Short, and Charlemagne, the country was known as Kingdom of Franks or Francia. At the Treaty of Verdun in 843, the Frankish Empire was divided in three parts: West Francia ("Francia Occidentalis"), Middle Francia and East Francia ("Francia Orientalis").

The rulers of "Francia Orientalis," who soon claimed the imperial title and wanted to reunify the Frankish Empire, dropped the name "Francia Orientalis" and called their realm the Holy Roman Empire (see History of Germany). The kings of "Francia Occidentalis" successfully opposed this claim and managed to preserve "Francia Occidentalis" as an independent kingdom, distinct from the Holy Roman Empire. The Battle of Bouvines in 1214 definitively marked the end of the efforts by the Holy Roman Empire to reunify the old Frankish Empire by conquering France.

Since the name "Francia Orientalis" had disappeared, there arose the habit to refer to "Francia Occidentalis" as "Francia" only, from which the word France is derived. The French state has been in continuous existence since 843 (except for a brief interruption in 885-887), with an unbroken line of heads of states since the first king of "Francia Occidentalis" (Charles the Bald) to the current president of the French Republic. Noticeably, in German, France is still called "Frankreich," which literally means "'Reich' (empire) of the Franks." In order to distinguish it from the Frankish Empire of Charlemagne, France is called "Frankreich," while the Frankish Empire is called "Frankenreich."

In most of the Germanic languages, France is known as the historical "Land of the Franks," for example, "Frankreich" (Reich of the Franks) in German, Frankrijk (Rijk of the Franks) in Dutch, "Frankrike" (Rike of the Franks) in Swedish and Norwegian, "Frankrig" in Danish.

In a more restricted meaning, "France" refers specifically to the province of Île-de-France (with Paris at its centre) which historically was the heart of the royal demesne. This meaning is found in some geographic names, such as French brie ("Brie française") and French Vexin ("Vexin français"). French Brie, the area where the famous Brie cheese is produced, is the part of Brie that was annexed to the royal demesne, as opposed to Champagne Brie ("Brie champenoise") which was annexed by Champagne. Likewise, French Vexin was the part of Vexin inside Île-de-France, as opposed to Norman Vexin ("Vexin normand") which was inside Normandy.

This meaning is also found in the name of the French language ("langue française"), whose literal meaning is "language of Île-de-France". It is not until the 19th and 20th centuries that the language of Île-de-France indeed became the language of the whole country France. In modern French, the French language is called "le français," while the old language of Île-de-France is called by the name applied to it according to a 19th-century theory on the origin of the French language - "le francien."

Franconia
Further information: Franconia and Rhenish Franconia

"Franconia" became the Latin name of East Francia, derived from the German name "Franken" "realm of the Franks," "Franconia" was introduced as a synonym of "Francia orientalis" by the 12th century (Annalista Saxo), and came to be used of the Duchy of Franconia as it stood during the 9th and 10th centuries, divided Franconia during the later medieval period, and the Franconian Circle of the early modern period.

Franconian vs. Frankish
The division made between "Franconia" and "Francia" for German and French territories of the former Frankish Empire leads to terminological difficulties in English.
"
English has the two adjectives "Franconian" and "Frankish" translating what in Dutch and German is expressed by a single adjective ("frankisch" and "fränkisch," respectively). "Franconian" translates German "fränkisch" when referring to the "Franconia" within the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th century onward, while Frankish tends to refer to the period of the unified Frankish realm, during the 5th to 9th centuries.

But there are exceptions, most notably in the context of linguistics, where the term Franconian languages translates German "fränkische Sprachen," French "Langues franciques." This group of dialects has a complicated history due to the geographical spreadof the High German consonant shift as it developed during the medieval period. Dutch remained unaffected by the consonant shift while Central and Rhenish and High Franconian form a dialect continuum within High German.

Since these dialects are all derived from the early medieval language of the Franks, linguistic terminology in English varies between the names "Frankish" and "Franconian," the Germanic language of Merowingian Francia being variously known as "Old Frankish," "Old Franconian" or simply "Frankish."

Old Franconian
The German term "altfränkisch" as it was introduced in the mid 19th century did not refer to the early medieval period, but was used as a nostalgic term for "old-timey" Franconia (compare Old English vs. Olde England). This was rendered into English as "Old Franconian," with 19th-century sources talking about Old Franconian towns, songs, people, etc. But the same term "altfränkisch" came to be used of the Frankish language of the Merovingian period.

Gustave Solling's "Diutiska" (1863) used the adjective "Franconian" in reference to the Merowingian period, and "Old Franconian" for the language of the Pledge of Charles the Bald.[15]

In 1890 Ernest Adams defined "Old Franconian" as an Old High German dialect spoken on the middle and upper Rhine; i.e., it went beyond the limits of Franconia to comprise also the dialect continuum ..