1
French Culture Questions and answers.
Students will take a 100 question multiple choice test that will be scantron graded. The students with the top scores (85 or higher)
will be placed on two teams for a live culture quiz bowl. The team that answers the most questions correctly out of 3 rounds wins.
Please know that questions may be worded in a different way in the actual competition!
(original source: Teacher's Discovery culture trivia game‐ many cards have been eliminated or reworded)
Famous people.
1. Who is France's most famous ecologist?
2. Why were the first hot‐air balloons know as montegolfières?
3.Who was the first female prime minister, appointed in 1991?
4. Whose work on radiation was the first step in treatment for cancer?
5. Who built the world famous structure in Paris in 1889?
6. What did Gustave Eiffel build before he built the Eiffel Tower?
7. Who helped design the great American landmark, the Statue of Liberty?
8. Who was the first French explorer of North America?
9. Who launched the first hot‐air balloon in 1731?
10.Who transformed the layout of the city of Paris after 20 years?
11. What did the brothers Louis and Auguste Lumière invent?
12. Who was the first great writer in France?
13. Which French writer wrote The Three Musketeers?
14. Who is responsbile for the invention of the cinema in the late 19th century?
15.Who were the two most prominent scientists in early 20th century France?
16.Who was the first woman to be appointed professor at the Sorbonne?
17. What was Louis Pasteur's most important vaccine?
18. What did André‐Jacques Garnerin create 200 years ago?
24. What did René Laennec create in 1816?
25. What did Louis Braille create in 1824?
26.How old was Louis Braille when he invented the Braille system?
27. What equipment did Emile Gagnon and Jacques Cousteau invent?
28. Who composed the national anthem of France?
Jacques‐Yves Cousteau
After the inventors‐the Montgolfière brothers
Edith Cresson
Marie Curie
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel
bridges, specifically the Bordeaux Bridge
Gustave Eiffel
Jacques Cartier
the brothers Montgolfière
Baron Georges Haussmann
the movie camera and projector
François Rabelais
Alexndre Dumas (père)
the Lumière brothers Louis and Auguste
Marie Curie and Louis Pasteur
Marie Curie
the rabies vaccine
the parachute
the stethoscope
Braille script to help the blind read
15 years old
Scuba gear
Claude‐Joseph and Rouget de Lisle
French Culture Bowl Questions
2
29. Who stayed at the Palace of Fountainbleau?
30. Which American was known as the music‐hall queen in Paris in the 1920's?
31. Who invented the process of pasteurization?
32. Who was Louis Renault?
33. What was the profession of Coco Chanel?
34. What kind of animal is Babar?
35. Whos is Astérix?
36. Where was Picasso born?
37.What did Robert de Sorbon found?
38. Why is Jean‐Paul Belmondo famous?
39. What is the nationality of the painter of Mona Lisa?
40.The "Man in the Iron Mask" was the supposed twin of which French king?
41. Who won the Nobel Prize for physics in 1903?
42. What is named after Jean Nicot, the French ambassador to Portugal in 1560?
43.What was the profession of Debussy?
44. What was the stage name of Jean‐Baptiste Poquelin?
45. Which French sculptor dominated the 19th century?
46. Which artist painted scenes from the Moulin Rouge?
47. Who sculpted Le Penseur?
48.What opera did Georges Bizet write that is considered his masterpiece?
49. With which school of literature is Victor Hugo associated?
50. During which century did Albert Camus write?
51. What did Paul Verlaine write?
52. Who wrote Candide?
53.Who composed Boléro?
54. Who is considered the greatest writer of fables in France?
55.Who was Molière?
56. Who wrote Tartuffe?
57. Who wrote Les Misérables?
58. How old was Joan of Arc when she was killed in May 1431?
59.Why did the French people dislike Marie Antoinette?
60.Marie Antoinette was not French. What was her nationality?
Napoleon
Josephine Baker
Louis Pasteur
the founder of Renault automobiles
fashion designer
elephant
a cartoon character
Spain
the French university‐ La Sorbonne
he is a film star
Italian
Louis XIV
Marie and Pierre Curie
la nicotine
composer
Molière
Auguste Rodin
Henri Toulousse ‐ Lautrec
Auguste Rodin
Carmen
Romanticism
20th century
poetry
Voltaire
Maurice Ravel
Jean de la Fontaine
a 17th century playwright
Molière
Victor Hugo
nineteen
for not understanding the people and for
frivolously spending money
Austrian
French Culture Bowl Questions
3
61. What building is named after Georges Pompidou?
62. Who said "l'Etat, c'est moi" (I am the state)
Le centre Pompidou (Beaubourg)
Louis XIV
63. Who is Zinédine Zidane?
a soccer player of Algerian origin who helped bring
the world cup to France in 1998
Nicolas Sarkozy
Polish
Carla Bruni
she was a singer, actress and model
Jules Verne
François Mitterand
Coco Chanel, Yves St. Laurent, Christian Dior
that is where he died
Antoine de Saint Exupéry
64. Who is the current president of France?
65. What is Nicolas Sarkozy's original nationality?
66. Who is the wife of Nicolas Sarkozy?
67. What did Carla Bruni do before she was the first lady of France?
68. Name the author of Around the World in Eighty Days.
69. Which French president commissioned the glass pyramid at the Louvre?
70. Which 3 clothing designers first influenced fashion trends?
71. Why is St. Hélène associated with Napoléon?
72. Who wrote Le Petit Prince?
Food and Drink
1. What type of cooking is called provincial?
2. Name the movement in the '70s featuring simpler foods and smaller portions.
3. Which meal of the day is considered the "main meal"?
4. What is the French term for the meal that is celebrated Christmas Eve?
5. What is une bûche de Noël?
traditional, local cooking
nouvelle cuisine
lunch
le reveillon de Noël
rich chocolate cake with vanilla or coffee icing in
the shape of a log
6. What type of mushrooms are grown underground and are the size of golf balls? truffles
7. When would one eat un goûter?
in the afternoon (a snack)
8. Name two delicacies of France?
frog legs (les cuisses de grenouilles) snails
(escargots) goose liver pâté (pâté de foie gras)
9.What is pâté?
a paste of ground meat and/or liver, or fish
10. What is a popular fish stew that is served as a soup in the South of France?
bouilliabasse
11. What is fondue savoyarde?
chunks of French bread dipped in melted cheese
12. What do you call a meal where you cook chunks of beef in hot oil at the table? fondue bourguignonne
13. How many different types of cheese does France produce?
about 400
French Culture Bowl Questions
4
14. What type of cooking is called haute cuisine?
15. What is boudin noir (black pudding) made with?
16. Cooking in France is considered a form of……?
17. What is the French name for home cooking?
18. At dinnertime, what do French families do at the table?
19. What do the French buy almost daily at the bakery?
20. After a "fancy" dinner, what is the evening topped off with?
21. What types of food is Normandy famous for?
22. What are crêpes Suzettes?
23. What is Brittany known for?
24. Who developed the method of making champagne?
25. What is a famous French beef stew?
26. Which ingredient is essential in Provençal cooking?
27. What kind of animal is used to snuffle out wild mushrooms and truffles?
28. Who brought "high cooking" into France in 1600?
29. What is the French term for bakery?
30. What time do the French usually eat dinner?
31. What is the French delicacy Foie Gras?
32. What country does more exporting of food than France?
33. What is potage?
34. On what kind of bottle would you find the word brut?
35. On what would you put une vinaigrette?
36. What are crudités?
37. What is le Camembert?
38. What are des fruits de mer?
39. What is une crêperie?
40. What is la viande chevaline?
41. When do you drink un apéritif?
42. What flavor is the liquor Cointreau?
43. What is la gastronomie?
44. When do you eat une galette des rois?
45. What is un mille‐feuilles?
46. What wine is used in boeuf bourguignon? Red or white?
gourmet cooking
pigs blood
art
cuisine bourgeoise
gather and share events from the day, converse!
croissants and baguettes
strong black coffee
cheese, butter, and apple brandy(Calvados)
orange flavored, sweet thin pancakes
seafood, and crêpes
dom Perignon
boeuf bourguignon
garlic
pig
Italian princess Marie de Médicis
boulangerie
between 7:00 and 9:30 PM
fattened liver of duck or goose
the United States
soup
une bouteille de champagne
une salade
raw, fresh vegetables
cheese
seafood
a place where they make and sell crêpes
horsemeat
before a meal
orange
the art of preparing good food
le six janvier
a flaky pastry
red
French Culture Bowl Questions
5
47.What does une baguette mean besides a loaf of bread?
48. What is une religieuse?
49. What is un croque‐monsieur?
50. What are marrons glacés?
51. What is Orangina?
52. What is Calvados?
53. What is the flavor of un macaron?
54. What is un beignet?
55. What nut is sold hot on the street of Paris in the winter?
56.What is une bûche de Noël?
57. What kind of fruit is grown in Corsica?
58. What do some people do before putting the lettuce in a salad bowl?
59. What is sold in une charcuterie?
60. At which celebrations do you give dragées?
61. What is une dragée?
62. What is in café au lait?
63. What are the main ingredients of une choucroute garnie?
64. In which region is beer really popular?
65. What is une madeleine?
66. What is un petit beurre?
67. What is une langue de chat?
68. What has four legs and two long ears and tastes good in a stew?
68. What is une langue de veau?
69. What is magret de canard?
70. What is une coquille Saint‐Jacques?
71. What are moules marnière?
72. What is the main ingredient of bouillabaisse?
73. What is un homard?
74. What are des oeufs sur le plat?
75. What is une douzaine d'huitres?
76. How do you most often eat oysters in France?
77. At what meal are eggs eaten?
78. What is le plateau de fromages?
a stick
a pastry (also means "a nun")
a toasted ham and cheese sandwich
candied chestnuts
an orange soft drink
apple liquor
almond and coconut
a fried pastry
chestnuts
a Christmas cake shaped like a log
citrus
rub the bowl with garlic
processed meats and sandwiches
christenings and weddings
a sugared almond
hot milk and coffee
sauerkraut, meat and potatoes
Alsace and Lorraine
a cookie
a cookie
a cookie
un lapin ( a rabbit)
a veal tongue
filet of duck breast
a scallop
mussels steamed open in wine seasonings
fish
a lobster
fried eggs
a dozen oysters
raw; on the half shell with a splash of lemon
lunch or dinner; almost never at breakfast
a platter with a selection of cheeses
French Culture Bowl Questions
6
79. Can a pâté be made with rabbit?
80. What does tomates farcies mean?
81. Couscous is a popular dish in France. Where did it come from?
82. Where did le croissant originate?
83. What are des tripes à la mode de Caen?
84. What is hidden in a galette de rois?
of course
stuffed tomatoes
North Africa
Vienna, to celebrate the end of the siege of the
city by the Turks
tripes cooked very slowly in sauce
( up to 24 hours)
a bean or small porcelain figure
Geography
1. What industry produces most of France's electricity?
2. Where is the Center for French Space Programs?
3. What types of industry are most prominent in Toulouse, France?
4. Where is France's spacecraft launched?
5. What is the name of the long beach in Southern France?
6. What are Europe's tallest mountains bordering France & Italy?
7. Which French city has been the center of perfume production for centuries?
8. What is the largest country of Western Europe?
9. Evian, Badoit and Vichy are French cities famous for what?
10. What shape do the 20 major highways leading in and out of Paris form?
11. What is the largest city in France?
12. What countries border France to the North?
13. What countries border France to the East?
14. What borders France to the South?
15. What is the highest point in France?
16. What are the four major rivers of France?
17. What fragrant purple flower is grown for perfume in Southern France?
18. What city has the biggest carnival in France every year?
19. How many people live in metropolitan Paris?
20. On the south side of the Seine River is the Left Bank, which is home to whom?
21. The Universtiy of Paris is called what?
22. When was the Sorbonne founded on the Left Bank?
the nuclear power industry
Toulouse
Space, electronics, and computer software
Kourou (French Guyana)
the French Riviera
the Alps
Grasse
France
mineral water
a star
Paris
Belgium and Luxembourg
Germany, Switzerland and Italy
the Mediterranean Sea and Spain
Mount Blanc
the Seine, the Garonne, the Rhone, the Loire
lavender
Nice
over two million as of 2004
artists, writers, and students
la Sorbonne
the 13th century
French Culture Bowl Questions
7
23.What is found on the north side of the Seine River, called the Right Bank?
24. What is one of the largest crops in France?
25. Olives grow where in the summer in France?
26. What type of land is more prevalent in France than in the rest of W. Europe?
27. How tall is the Eiffel Tower?
28. What is the longest river in France?
29. What is a significant mineral of France?
30 What is France's most important national resource?
31.What countries still use French as their official language?
32.What type of transportation links France and England?
33.What do the French call the English Channel?
34.How many departments are there in mainland France?
35.What is the Côte d'Azur and where is it?
36. What city is at the mouth of the Rhône?
37. For what is Limoges famous?
38. For what is Grasse famous?
39. Where is Biarritz?
40. Where is le pays Basque?
41. Where were the kings of France crowned for hundreds of years?
42. What is Carcassonne?
43. What is now found at La place de la Concorde?
44. What is Chartres famous for and where is it?
45. What is le Jura?
46. Where was a papal palace built in France?
47. Where is Nice?
48. What regions are famous for their butter?
49. What is the name of the extinct volcano range in France?
50.Where is Orly and what is it?
51. Where is the Quartier Latin located?
52.Where is Strasbourg located?
53.Where is le grand Trianon?
54. What are the political divisions of France called?
55. What is the approximent geometrical shape of France?
business section with offices, shopping &factories
wheat
southern France
farmland
1000 feet/300 meters
the Loire/ 634 miles/ 1020 kiometers
iron ore
fertile soil
ex‐colonies in Africa
a railway known as the Channel Tunnel/Chunnel
la Manche "the sleeve"
95
the French Riviera; southern France
Marseille
porcelain
perfume
on the southwest coast of France
in the French and Spanish western Pyrenees
the cathedral in Reims
a fortified city in southern France
an Egyptian obelisk
the cathedral; southwest of Paris
a mountain range
Avignon
Southern France on the Côte d'Azur
Normandy and Brittany
le Massif Central
it is an airport on the southside of Paris
on the Left Bank in Paris
in eastern France near Germany
Versailles
departements
a hexagon
French Culture Bowl Questions
8
56. Where is the Hall of Mirrors?
57. Near which large city is Versailles located ?
58. What are the divisions of Paris called?
59. What is the largest port of France?
60. What sea is to the south of France?
61. Where is la Promenade des Anglais?
62. What body of water is to the west of France?
63. What mountain range separates France and Spain?
64. What French island is located in the Mediterranean?
65. Where does a smaller Statue of Liberty stand in France?
66. Which river divides Paris into the Right Bank and the Left Bank?
67. Where is Lille located?
68. In which general direction is le Mont Blanc from Paris?
69. Which French territory is in South America?
70. Which French territory is off the coast of Canada?
71. What Departement Outre Mer of France is located in the Carribean?
72. Where is la Polynésie française?
73. What is the largest island in la Polynésie française?
74. What is the principal city of la Guyane française?
75. What is a DOM?
76.What is la France métropolitaine?
77. What is the origin of most Martiniquais and Guadeloupéens?
Versailles
Paris
les arrondissements
Marseille
la Méditerranée
Nice
l'océan Atlantique
les Pyrénées
la Corse
in Paris, on an islet in the middle of the Seine
la Seine
in the northeast corner near Belgium
Southeast
la Guyane française
Saint‐Pierre et Miquelon
la Martinique/ la Guadeloupe (at least one)
in the south Pacific
Tahiti
Cayenne
Departement outre mer/overseas France
Continental France
African
Sports and Arts
1. What are the three schools of art that flourished in the mid 19th century?
2. The cathedral of Chartres is an example of which type of art?
3. The Palace of Versailles is a monument to art of which period?
4. Where did the first ever public film screening take place in 1895?
5. What do painters from the romantic period appeal to?
6. Who was the musician who collaborated with Molière?
7. Which art movement do the painters Edgar Degas, Claude Monet
and Pierre‐Auguste Renoir belong to?
Romanticism, Realism, and Impressionism
Gothic
the Baroque period
Paris
emotions and imagination
Jean‐Baptiste Lully
Impressionism
French Culture Bowl Questions
9
8. Who was Louis Lumière?
9. Who won the Tour de France in 2002?
10. How many paintings does the Louvre hold?
11. In which month is the Tour de France held?
12. When was the first women's Tour de France held?
13. How old are the wall paintings in the caves of Lascaux?
14. When did the first real school of French painting emerge?
15. What type of painting is Cubism?
16. Which musicians were prominent in the early 19th century?
17. Where is the oldest and most famous film festival in France?
18. When did the Cannes Film Festival begin?
19. When did gothic architecture originate in France?
20. How long did the construction of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris take?
21. What is the most popular sport in France?
22. What is the French term for soccer?
23. When did France play host to the World Cup for soccer?
24. What are the Auteuil, Longchamps, Chantilly and St. Cloud in Paris?
25. Where do Parisians participate in skiing and other winter sports?
26. What would you see at un hippodrome?
27. What types of sports do the French prefer?
28. What are the two most popular French sporting events in summer?
29. What was the profession of Toulouse‐Lautrec?
30. How long does the car race at Le Mans last?
31. What would you do at la Comédie Française?
32. Who is Quasimodo?
33. What is the profession of Catherine Deneuve?
34. What kind of composer was Debussy?
35. Which came first, Romanesque or Gothic architecture?
36. What is more ornate? Gothic or Romanesque?
37. What is the Tour de France and how long does it last?
38. What would you do at a patinoire?
39. We call it football, the French call it….
he invented moving pictures
the American, Lance Armstrong
about 300,000
July
1984
15,000 years old
during the Baroque period, 16‐18th century
painting with geometric shapes
Hector Berlioz and Fréderic Chopin
Cannes
1946
the 12th century
almost 200 years
soccer
le football or le foot
1998
racetracks
the Alps and the Pyrénées
horse racing
indiviual sports‐Ex. Tennis, cycling, and sailing
Roland Garros Tennis Tournament and the Tour
de France
painter
24 heures
watch a play
the Hunchback in The Hunchback of Notre Dame
actress
Impressionist
Romanesque
Gothic
a bicycle race; three weeks
ice skate
le football américain
French Culture Bowl Questions
10
40. We call it baseball, the French call it…
41. What is Mona Lisa fondly called by the French?
42. Where can you see La Joconde?
43. What is le cochonnet in the game of boules?
44. When was Impressionism at its height as a style?
45. In what year did France win the Soccer World Cup for the first time?
46. What do you call a stage of the Tour de France?
47. When did the Tour de France not occur during its history?
48. What French actor has starred in such American movies as" Green Card"
and "Christopher Columbus"?
49. What was the center of international art in the 20th century until after WWII?
50. Who are the most famous cubist artists?
51. What do French people sometimes call the cinema?
52. Who is Vanessa Paradis?
53. Who was the leading man in the 1990 film" Cyrano de Bergerac"?
54. What are M.C. Solaar, Assassins and NTM?
55. Where does the festival of the American film take place?
56. What is un clip?
57. What world famous theater festival was founded in Provence in 1947?
58. What musical festival is Aix‐en‐Provence famous for?
59. Where is le Musée Picasso?
60. What Museum in Paris is housed in an old train station?
61.What is in the Musée d'Orsay?
62. What is in the Centre Pompidou?
63. Who is Guignol?
64. What is the equivalent of the Oscar in France?
le baseball
la Joconde
at the Louvre in Paris
the little ball the player tries to get near
late 1800s
1998
une étape
during WWI and WWII
Gérard Depardieu
Paris
Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso
le septième art (the seventh art)
a singer
Gérard Depardieu
French rap groups
Deauville
a music video
Le festival d'Avignon
the Opera Festival
in Paris
le Musée d'Orsay
art, including decorative arts from 1848‐1914
modern and contemporary art of the Western World
a puppet character dressed as a silk worker le César
History
1. At what age did Louis XIV begin ruling France?
2. Where were the boudanries of modern France established?
3. Protestantism came to France during the 1500's. Those who converted
age 5
1500
Huguenots
French Culture Bowl Questions
11
were called?
4. On June 12, 1940, Paris surrendered to what country ?
Germany
5. By 1942 who had taken over the entire country of France?
the Germans
6. From what did Paris get its name ?
a Gallic tribe called the Parisii
7. What was the Roman (Latin) name for Paris?
Lutetia
8. What caused the French Revolution of 1789?
high taxes and starvation
9. What was the country of France named before the Roman times?
Gaul
10. Prior to the Roman invasion what was the language of the area we call France? Celtic
11. Name the series of wars between the French and English that began in 1337? the Hundred Years' War
12. What event is considered the start of the French Revolution?
the storming of the Bastille
13. What was the sale of France's North American colony to the US called?
the Louisiana Purchase
14. When did the Germans invade France, beginning World War I?
1914
15. Who entered WW I in 1917 to help France defeat Germany?
the United States
16. Who did France join to declare war on Germany to begin WWII?
Britain
17. Who invaded and occupied the northern and western parts of France in 1940? Germany
18. Who led the underground resistance movement for those who opposed the General Charles de Gaulle
Nazi takeover in France?
19. What is the meaning of "cohabitation", in French politics?
the president and government belong to different
political parties
20. Who brought order back to France after the Revolution?
Napoléon Bonaparte
21. Who crowned himself emperor in 1804?
Napoléon Bonaparte
22. How long is the presidential term in France?
five years
23. What happened to Charles VII on July 17, 1429?
he was crowned King of France
24. Why was Joan of Arc burned at the stake in 1431?
she was accused of being a witch
25. Which king of France was known as the Sun King?
Louis XIV
26. What was shipped to New York from France as a gift in 1885?
the Statue of Liberty
27. For which occasion was the Eiffel Tower built?
for the 1889 World Fair
28. Durning what period were les châteaux built?
la Renaissance
29. Where is Napoléon's body today?
Hôtel des Invalides in Paris
30. Where was the final defeat of Napoléon?
Waterloo
31. What happened in Paris in May 1968?
Student riots
the salamander
32. What was the symbol of François I?
33. Who was the first national hero of France?
Vercingétorix
French Culture Bowl Questions
12
34. Which museum was originated by Louis XIV in 1693?
35. During which century did the Renaissance take place?
36. Who married Joséphine Beauharnais? Where was she from?
37. Who was the great king of the 16th century?
38. Which king built le château de Chambord?
39. Along which river were most of the Renaissance Châteaux built?
40. How old was Marie Antoinette when she married Louis XVI?
41. Who was Charlemagne's champion knight?
42. What was the profession of the man who invented Champagne?
43. During which century did Louis XIV reign?
44. Who succeeded Charles de Gaulle as President?
45. Who was the cardinal who served as regent for Louis XIII?
46. What did l'Édit de Nantes declare?
47. Who revoked l'Édit de Nantes?
48. Which Republic is France under today?
49. Who was imprisoned at the Conicergerie?
50. What is the nickname of the French flag?
51. Who was made emperor in 800 AD?
52. What war leader was chief of the French army at age 26?
53. What is the French motto that came as a result of the Revolution?
54. What is la Code Napoléon?
55. Who led the Romans into France in 52 BC?
56. What is the French national anthem?
57. Who had Versailles built to its present‐day splendor?
58. What was la Bastille?
59. Under whose leadership was the metric system established?
60. Where was Napoléon Bonaparte born?
61. Which family had the fleur de lis as a symbol?
62. What American professional team uses the fleur de lis symbol?
63. What famous conquest is depicted in the famous Bayeux tapestry?
64. What is the difference between un château fort and un château renaissance?
65. What was the original purpose of le Louvre?
le Louvre
the 16th century
Napoléon Bonaparte; Martinique
François I
François I
la Loire
14 years old
Roland
a Monk
the 17th century
Georges Pompidou
Cardinal Richelieu
religious freedom
Louis XIV
the Fifth Republic
Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI
le tricolore
Charlemagne
Napoléon Bonaparte
Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
it is the first modern legal code of France
Julius Caesar
la Marseillaise
Louis XIV
a prison in Paris
Napoléon Bonaparte
La Corse (Corsica)
the Bourbons
the New Orleans Saints
William the Conqueror invading England in 1066
the first is built for defense, the second as
a beautiful residence
palace of the kings of France
French Culture Bowl Questions
13
66. Who signed an armistice with Hitler that divided France into 2 parts?
67. Who led the armies of the French King Charles VII to victory?
68. Who was the queen of France at the time of the Revolution?
69. Who was the first president of the 5th Republic?
70. What is Le Front National?
71. Who has been the leader of Le Front National since 1972?
72. What helped rebuild France at the end of WW II?
73. During what president's term did the term change from 7 years to 5?
74. What did France lose in the Franco‐German war of 1870‐1871?
75. What did France get back at the end of WW I?
76. Who was the head of the Vichy government?
le Maréchal Pétain
Jeanne d'Arc
Marie Antoinette
Charles de Gaulle
a right‐wing anti‐immigration party
Jean‐Marie le Pen
the Marshall Plan
Jacques Chirac
Alsace and Lorraine
Alsace and Lorraine
le Maréchal Pétain
Life
1. On what day of the week are elections always held in France?
2. What amusement park in Paris is the equivalent to Disneyland?
3. What is considered rude to do in a restaurant at the end of a meal?
4. When do the Christmas holiday celebrations begin in France?
5. What colors are on the flag of France?
6. How old must you be to vote in France?
7. How do French people greet each other?
8. What kind of school is called le collège in France?
9. How are students chosen to attend a university?
10. What is the underground subway system called in Paris?
11. What type of game is boules?
12. What are the two most popular theme parks in France?
13. What time period is the comic strip Asterix based on?
14. What day in France is comparable to the American Independence Day?
15. When do the festivals for the harvesting of wine grapes take place?
16. How long ago did the French invent playing cards divided into the four suits?
Sunday
Euro Disney
ask for a "doggy bag"
December 6th
blue, white, red
18 years old
with a handshake or a kiss on the cheek (2 or 3!)
a secondary school (junior high or mid‐high)
they have to pass the baccalaureate exam (le bac)
le métro
a kind of outdoor bowling game using two large metal balls and one smaller one
Parc Asterix and Euro Disney
the time when France was called Gaul and the Romans invaded
Bastille Day, le 14 juillet
September
500 years ago
French Culture Bowl Questions
14
17. Which holiday celebrated in the US began in France 450 years ago?
18. What type of shoes was invented in France 400 years ago?
19. What types of business attire did the French create?
20. The French invented the coffee pot how many years ago?
21. Which transportation system is among the most modern and efficient?
22. What is the name of the French space program?
23. ARIANE launchers are used mainly to send what into space?
24. What religion do most people in France practice?
25. What was invented by a French doctor 200 years ago?
26. What type of political system rules France?
27. What is le Mairie?
28. French children must attend school until what age?
29. Which type of American music has had the most influence on the French?
30. Where in France is the Celtic influence still strong?
31. What fabric originated in France, but is very popular in the US?
32. What is the official name for the country of France?
33. In France, what type of wedding is required by law?
34. What does service compris mean?
35. What is un centre commercial?
36. What is the Sorbonne?
37. What is the largest airline in France?
38. What is the largest type of transportation that can carry 500 people called?
39. In France, where would you find a concierge?
40. Do the French have more or less leisure time than Americans?
41. What is the French for high school?
42. When do the French celebrate la Toussaint?
43. What is une pissoire?
44. What is tutoiement?
45. What is vouvoiement?
46. What is un marché aux puces?
47. What is un bateau‐mouche?
48. What is le Figaro?
49. What is une maison de retraite?
April Fool's Day
high‐heeled shoes
suits and neckties
200 years ago
the high‐speed train (TGV)
ARIANE
telecommunication satellites
Roman Catholic; Catholicism
the ambulance
democracy
the town hall
sixteen
jazz
Normandy and Brittany
denim (de Nîmes)
the French Republic
civil
tip is included
a shopping center
a Paris university
Air France
Air bus
in an apartment building
more
le lycée
1‐Nov
a public lavatory for men
using the familiar tu when talking to someone using the formal vous when talking to someone
a flea market
a tourist boat on the Seine River in Paris
a French newspaper
a nursing home
French Culture Bowl Questions
15
50. What is a flipper?
51. What comes first l'école primaire or l'école maternelle?
52. What does défense de on a sign mean?
53. What is Maxim's?
54. What is la zone bleue?
55. When is the French labor day?
56. Where would you find un bidet?
57. What is the SNCF?
58. At what age do children go to le lycée?
59. In which hand do the French usually hold the fork while eating?
60. What would you do at the Galerie Lafayette?
61. Is un litre more or less than a gallon?
62. Is un mètre more or less than a yard?
63. Is un centimètre more or less that an inch?
64. How many centimètres in one mètre?
65. How many mètres in un kilomètre?
66. What is un kilo abrreviation of?
67. How many grammes in un kilo?
68. What is longer, un kilomètre or a mile?
69. What is heavier, un kilo or 2 pounds?
70. What is un wagon‐lit?
71. What is un wagon‐restaurant?
72. what is une Citroën?
73. What do French cows say?
74. What do French roosters say at the crack of dawn?
75. What do French ducks say?
a pinball machine
l'école maternelle
don't do it
a restaurant in Paris
a parking zone
1‐May
in a bathroom
the railroad company:Société Nationale de Chemin de Fer
15‐16
the left hand
shop
less
more
less
100
1,000
un kilogramme
1,000
a mile
un kilo
a sleeping car on a train
dining car on a train
a French car meuh!
cocorico!
coin coin!
French Culture Bowl Questions