It never stops to annoy me.

[slowmotion]

Why do the English call the stretch of water between France and England the English Channel? Since when does England own it? Every time I see it written on a map, I always cross off the word "English" as they don't own it. In France we call it :" La Manche" which means The Sleeve as this is what it looks like . I think it is very pretentious of the English to pretend to own it. Rant over.

You seem to have been laid low by a bout of self loathing. You don't happen to read the Guardian, do you?

 

[Profpointy]

We have French letters, but they have la vice Anglais

 

[Drago]

It's called the English channel, because every time in the last 953 years that someone has tried to sail across it to try and invade England they've been given a jolly good kicking and sent packing.

The name is merely convention, but one earned through almost a millenia of arriss kicking. If the Armada hadn't been given a jolly good drubbing by Drake's boys it would doubtless be named the Spanish Sewer, or somesuch.

Now, what about all the French place names in Algeria? See - history is as history does, and right or wrong it is still history.

 

[srw]

It's called the English channel, because every time in the last 953 years that someone has tried to sail across it to try and invade England they've been given a jolly good kicking and sent packing.

.

Leaving aside 1688 when the English invited the Dutch in. And 1714 when they invited a German to take over. And 1901 when the son of a different German took over. And 1603 when they invited a Scot down because there were no acceptable English candidates. And 1916 when a bunch of Irish people took over what the English had got used to thinking of England over the water.

History is so easy if you squint and ignore uncomfortable truths.

 

[Drago]

Leaving aside 1688 when the English invited the Dutch in. And 1714 when they invited a German to take over. And 1901 when the son of a different German took over. And 1603 when they invited a Scot down because there were no acceptable English candidates. And 1916 when a bunch of Irish people took over what the English had got used to thinking of England over the water.

History is so easy if you squint and ignore uncomfortable truths.

Absolutely! And isn't Strasbourg a German name, yet the town is currently in France. At risk of being indelicate, during WWII much of France was in German hands, yet still maintained French place names.

The bottom line is territory belongs to those who have the power - political, economic, but mainly military - and the will to take it and hold it, and they then get to decide what it is called. This is why there are no counties, regions or seas called Weakling, Downtrodden or Conscientious Objector. The victor is the one who gets to write history. That's the reality, and reality has never heard the word "fair".

 

[gavroche]

You seem to have been laid low by a bout of self loathing. You don't happen to read the Guardian, do you?

I don't read newspapers.

 

[slowmotion]

I don't read newspapers.

Splendid!

 

[Drago]

I don't read newspapers.

Not since your paper boy was conscripted to the Maginot Line...

Chin up Mr Roche, if history had worked out differently on many occasions neither the UK or France would even exist. As imperfect as both nations are there are a lot worse places to live, such as the Congo, Somalia or Belgium.

Unless you have megalomaniac tendencies and a large military force hidden in your cupboard it's best to roll with it, have a drink, and vive la difference! The past is itself a foreign country.

 

[Grant Fondo]

They can call it Macron's Arse Trench from 1 April if it helps?

 

[snorri]

Why do the English call the stretch of water between France and England the English Channel? Since when does England own it? Every time I see it written on a map, I always cross off the word "English" as they don't own it. In France we call it :" La Manche" which means The Sleeve as this is what it looks like . I think it is very pretentious of the English to pretend to own it. Rant over.

Thanks for pointing this out, it is clear you are referring to an area of British Territorial Waters, I'll have a gunboat sent there immediately to reclaim it from the English.

 

[Cycleops]

You can only read a thread like this in a British forum.

 

[slowmotion]

Leaving aside 1688 when the English invited the Dutch in. And 1714 when they invited a German to take over. And 1901 when the son of a different German took over. And 1603 when they invited a Scot down because there were no acceptable English candidates. And 1916 when a bunch of Irish people took over what the English had got used to thinking of England over the water.

History is so easy if you squint and ignore uncomfortable truths.

An invitation hardly constitutes "an invasion", does it?

Edit: Presumably, in your revisionist view of history, Hitler was invited to come to Poland, Belgium, Holland, France, Russia, etc etc.
Quite remarkable.

 

[PeteXXX]

It all went downhill after we gave them Calais back...

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Didn't England become part of France anyway in 1066?

 

[glasgowcyclist]

What about crème anglaise?
Aren't the French just trying to steal custard from the English by giving it a French name?

I always score that out on restaurant menus and replace it with 'custard', written in green crayon.