From: beaurega@ireq.hydro.qc.ca (Denis Beauregard)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.canada,can.francais,mtl.followup
Subject: Toponymie (was Re: Ou est St.Catharines)
Date: 11 Sep 92 18:45:46 GMT
Organization: Institut de recherche d'Hydro-Quebec, Varennes, Canada

In article <1992Sep11.172229.3396@pandora.matrox.com> thood@corvus.matrox.com (Thomas Hood) writes:
>beaurega@ireq.hydro.qc.ca (Denis Beauregard) writes:
>>In article <1992Sep10.232323.24665@spxtech.qc.ca> steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter) writes:
>
>Having trouble getting him into your 'KILL' file, Denis? :-)

I actually decided to filter up messages i.e. nothing more about schools.

>
>>>Ignoring the deliberate efforts of some to replace english
>>>names for things in Quebec with french ones (sometimes totally
>
>>Qu'est-ce qui est stupide?  D'avoir une toponymie francaise dans un pays
>>francophone ou d'avoir une toponymie anglaise dans un pays francophone?
>>Autour de 1800, ce sont les anglophones qui ont anglicise de nombreux
>>endroits au Quebec.  Les franciser n'est qu'un juste retour des choses.
>>
>>Et d'ailleurs, pratiquement partout dans le monde, la toponymie reflete
>>la langue des habitants du pays.
>
>Many of North America's most beautiful names come from aboriginal languages,
>(e.g. "Canada") and most people would oppose changing them on the grounds
>that those languages are now predominant.

Maybe most beautiful, and indeed there are place names that are of
Amerindian or French origin throughout the North America.  Names like
Boise', Terre Haute, Dubuque, Eau Claire, Lachine, Beauregard (there is
a place in 1935 federal election in Alberta, near St.Paul, but I never
found it on map; there is a Beauregard parish in Louisiana too) all
remember that once natives had some French roots.  

However, these place names are just one in a many.  A small number of
places in USA have a French name.  Actually most have an English one.
The presence of a lot of English townships is not related with first
settlers but with a general trend including counties like Northumberland
and similar names in 1825 census.  Lucky enough, counties were corrected
later but townships survived.

There is a difference between a place named by settlers coming peacefully
in a place and renaming all geographic names following a conquest.  This
happened in the early 1800's and turning back to French names is just
coming back to what things should have been.  A lot of places in California
are Spanish, like Louisiana names are often French.  So, why shall we accept
that removing French names is acceptable and not putting them back is not?
Now that most English names are just historical aberrations and does
not reflect anything (i.e. Sutton was not settled by people from Sutton, Eng.)
except conquest spirit.

I understand that there was no original French name initially, but we have 
French roots, many places have a known first settler or first priest and
such names would often be more appropriate.  Not changing everything
in a few years, but letting local people changing the name at their will.
Like they changed Sunset Ave. to Avenue de la Brunante a few years ago.
And in a few case, it would be very useful as there are confusing names
(Potton and Bolton, Durham and Dunham, Lingwick and Tingwick, etc.).

If anglos renamed Cote St-Antoine to Westmount or Frontenac to Kingston,
what's wrong going English to French?

>Thomas Hood                                                    thood@matrox.com

P.S.  I'm still looking for that St.Catharine.  St.Catharine St. may be a hint?

-- 
  \_\    Denis Beauregard  *  internet:beaurega@ireq.hydro.qc.ca
 /   \   Genealogiste officiel : Beauregard/Jarret/Jarest/Vincent
J   __>  Un Quebec renouvele dans une Amerique renovee
\_.-===                                                  Opinions ? Et pis non !