I’ve compiled a French Christmas quiz every year since 2011. To see the others, click here.

First, let me wish all my readers a very Happy Christmas. Thank you for reading the blog this year. I always enjoy reading your comments and emails. Now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for: the Life on La Lune French Christmas Quiz, 7th Edition. My little Christmas present to my faithful readers and something for you to mull over over the mulled wine, or whatever tipple you prefer during the Festive Season.

The quiz, as always, consists of 20 questions on aspects of French history, culture, language, cuisine, geography and politics with multiple choice answers. Beware, there are a couple of trick questions where more than one answer might be correct.

A few rules:

• Try to answer without using the internet if you can – it doesn’t always give the right answer, anyway. You are, however, authorised to search this blog and you’ll find the answers to nearly all the questions buried here somewhere.
• Please don’t post up your answers in the comments section below. It spoils it for everyone else.
• Don’t take it too seriously; it’s all in fun.
• There are no prizes. Virtue is its own reward.
• I will provide the correct answers on Saturday 30^th December, so you have a week to puzzle over it.

1 What was the drink that came to symbolise the Bohemian lifestyle of Belle Epoque Paris?

a) Byrrh
b) Suze
c) Absinthe

2 Where would you go in France to consult an expert about whether a mushroom is safe to eat? 

a) La Mairie
b) La pharmacie
c) L’épicerie

3 Which château in SW France was used as an arms cache during World War II?

a) Château de Cas
b) Château de Belcastel
c) Château de Najac

4 What is a diablotin?

a) An imp or goblin
b) A round of bread with a savoury topping
c) A nickname for the guillotine

5 What is a canif?

a) A poodle-type breed of dog
b) A type of penknife
c) A flat-bottomed, river-going boat

6 Un fleuve is…

a) A river that flows into a lake
b) A river that flows into a sea or ocean
c) A river that is a tributary of another river

7 From which of the following was pastel dye once made in SW France?

a) Isatis tinctoria
b) Crocus sativus
c) Tuber melanosporum

8 Which of the following is a bastide town?

a) Villefranche-de-Rouergue
b) Cahors
c) Montauban

9 Which of these is an emblem of the City of Toulouse?

a) A fleur de lys
b) A violet
c) A crocus

10 In what state is someone if they “mange les pissenlits par la racine”?

a) Drunk
b) Hungry
c) Dead

11 What did a French law of 1962 decree about Christmas?

a) As France is a lay society, Christmas should not be mentioned in official correspondence
b) Every child who posts a letter to le Père Noël will receive a reply
c) Every low-income family should receive a free turkey from the state

12 Which French king decreed that 10 days should be removed from a month of December?

a) Henri III
b) Henri IV
c) Louis XIV

13 At Easter, the bells fly to Rome to be blessed by the Pope. What do they contain when they return?

a) Holy water
b) Incense
c) Chocolate

14 In which French town was the artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec born?

a) Toulouse
b) Albi
c) Lautrec

15 Which celebrated French mathematician was born in SW France?

a) Pierre de Fermat
b) Blaise Pascal
c) René Descartes

16 Who invented the hot air balloon?

a) Antoine Lavoisier
b) Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier
c) Pierre and Marie Curie

17 With which SW France town is d’Artagnan in Alexandre Dumas, père’s, novel Les Trois Mousquetaires, associated?

a) Cahors
b) Agen
c) Auch

18 What is the capital of the Occitanie Region of France, formed during the regional reorganisation in 2016?

a) Montpellier
b) Toulouse
c) Bordeaux

19 If someone has “des oursins dans la poche”, are they?

a) Mean
b) In a bad mood
c) Fidgeting

20 What is an OVNI?

a) A creature that lays eggs
b) An unidentified flying object
c) A non-governmental organisation

Have fun!

And if you fancy trying some of the previous years’ quizzes (answers given in the subsequent post), just click here.

*** Bonnes Fêtes ***

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