Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés
The length of the street was formerly the site of a river called "La Noue", which at the time formed the eastern boundary of the "Pré-aux-Clercs" (an area of land belonging to the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés). Later, the river was enlarged into a 27-m wide canal and named "Petite Seine" ('Little Seine'), which in turn supplied water to the moat of the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés when its fortifications were built during the 14th century.