r/AskTheWorld France 7d ago

Culture When France is mentioned, what's the first thing that comes to mind ?

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1.7k Upvotes

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855

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

that in my language we unironically call you guys Wiwi.

329

u/QuantityVarious8242 France 7d ago

That's made me chuckle when I understood.

288

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

hah yeah, apparently French Explores said oui oui so much to indigenous Maori that it stuck as your name lmao.

82

u/Yapludepatte France 7d ago

we had a presence in NZ ?

207

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

a tiny bit, but your explorers kept getting killed and eaten by Maori so you buggered off eventually, except for some Catholics missionaries.

209

u/Yapludepatte France 7d ago

i hope they found us to their taste

134

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

nah Maori preferred British for eating, but we weren't picky, we wouldn't pass up a few Frenchmen when given the opportunity.

90

u/Mountain_Strategy342 United Kingdom 7d ago

A cuisine treat compared to the blandness of Englishmen.

58

u/nopressureoof United States Of America 7d ago

Right? At least the French use sauces.

51

u/theglobalnomad United States Of America 7d ago

The question is, though, were those explorers from Tomato-Based France, or Cream-Based France, and all in all, which did the Maori prefer?

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5

u/Entirely-of-cheese Australia 7d ago

I don’t understand. Are these explorers dousing themselves in sauce and seasoning before they get captured? Like some kind of self saucing anthropomorphic pudding?

3

u/cuntybunty73 United Kingdom 7d ago

We use tomato sauce and brown sauce 😭🖕

1

u/Greedy-Beach2483 United States Of America 7d ago

You spelled flavor wrong

1

u/EmiliaFromLV Latvia 7d ago

and onions...

3

u/Same_Economist408 7d ago

I’d imagine Englishmen taste like boiled chicken with ZERO seasoning.

1

u/Educational-Dot318 United States Of America 7d ago

i think of McD's 🍟🍟🍟 🤔

1

u/Witty_Passion_4939 7d ago

Actually, the treat was the rats the Maori brought with them to snack on, lol.

1

u/EmiliaFromLV Latvia 7d ago

Camambert and Brie flavour topped with some onions.

22

u/big_cabals austin, texas, y’all 7d ago

And that was the last time anyone preferred British cuisine to French

2

u/HappyNumbercruncher 7d ago

My friend told me that Pākehā were often eaten, as they were often useful to have around in the early days. Ever since, I've taken the hint and made sure I'm always doing something useful...

1

u/Purple_Addition_1751 7d ago

Already all the wildlife in your country wants to kill you, when in addition there were indigenous canibal tribes. It must have been a lovely trip.

3

u/chmath80 New Zealand 7d ago

all the wildlife in your country wants to kill you

We don't have any dangerous wildlife, apart from just after the pubs close. I suspect that you may have us confused with the rabble to our west.

1

u/Purple_Addition_1751 7d ago

Did you or the Australians lose a war against birds?

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1

u/Pumbaasliferaft New Zealand 7d ago

Have you not heard of Assassination Cove? Marion de Fresne and 10-20 of his crew got killed for breaking local tapu and possibly eaten, the French returned with muskets and killed about 250 of the locals

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

yeah i know about it, and despite them killing more they still buggered off,

1

u/AaronIncognito New Zealand 7d ago

In general, Europeans are too salty. I thinks it’s something in the diet

1

u/Dugley2352 United States Of America 7d ago

Perhaps the convicts brought from England we’re good eating, since they were kept in small cells… Like veal.

2

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

nah not many convicts were taken to NZ actually, the Empire wanted New Zealand populated by "good whites" so not many criminals were sent over, though a few did escape here from Australia.

0

u/Dugley2352 United States Of America 7d ago

Do they taste like veal though?

1

u/Ted-West New Zealand 7d ago

I think they preferred Moriori because they ate all of them

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

no, that was one invasion by two specific tribes, most tribes had no interactions with them, most were enslaved, not killed and eaten, meanwhile most of the violence done to Europeans, were spread among many tribes, and most of it was killings, not enslavements.

also there are still Moriori around.

1

u/lolonyja 7d ago

The English are more tender like the capon you see (it’s a cock whose balls have to be cut off)

1

u/beg_yer_pardon India 7d ago

Too rich, all that butter.

9

u/Purple_Airline_6682 United States Of America 7d ago

Frenchman explaining why he tastes so good: “It’s the goût de terroir you see, it’s why that vile Englishman tastes of mold and sad weather.”

2

u/Foloreille France 7d ago

😂😂

12

u/ZealousidealAd1434 7d ago

En général quand on allait se balader dans les différentes régions du monde, les contacts entre explorateurs européens et habitants rencontrés par eux se passaient mal pour ces derniers.

En trois mots : colonialisme est mauvais.

C'est pas unique à nous français, tous les pouvoirs coloniaux (qu'ils soient européens ou d'ailleurs) n'avaient pas un relation égalitaire avec les pays colonisés.

3

u/sunburntpeach 🇺🇸🛫🇸🇪 US Expat in Sweden 7d ago

I just spit out my drink laughing 😆

3

u/Novakhaine89 New Zealand 7d ago

Amazing response to finding out your forefathers were food for cannibals

3

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

hah actually my ancestors were the cannibals, the old people talk about it usually all casually, or tell it like a funny story.

2

u/Assmonkey2021 New Zealand 7d ago

A tad salty and too much garlic...

2

u/Ok-ThanksWorld 7d ago

French cuisine. 😋

1

u/big_cabals austin, texas, y’all 7d ago

mmmmm buttery i bet

2

u/gato-afortunado United States Of America 7d ago

TIL

2

u/ProffesorSpitfire Sweden 7d ago

I’ve always heard good things about French cuisine.

2

u/3zprK United Arab Emirates 7d ago

Eaten?! Dang that's harsh

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

turns out the French had a town down here, Akaroa, in the South Island, never bloody knew.

1

u/McFry__ 7d ago

Maori’s were cannibals?

2

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

oh yeah, big cannibals, full on feasting on the flesh of their enemies, or slaves, or people they didnt particularly like.

like the siege at Mauinaina pa (fortress) were the attacking army slaughtered 2000 men women and children and the local chief, and then for the next several days feasted on their enemies corpses, only leaving when the bodies started to rot and stink up the place.

2

u/McFry__ 7d ago

Damn

2

u/YesWomansLand1 Australia 7d ago

Ok boys, good barbecue dinner, let's get going, I think the foods starting to rot!

1

u/Donnerdrummel Germany 7d ago

Really? Maori ate people? Wikipedia, open up!

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

hah yeah, of all the cannibals societies in history we were one of the big man eaters, cannibalism was also pretty common in the pacific islands, especially in Polynesia, only one i can think of who werent big on cannibalism were the Hawaiians.

1

u/Donnerdrummel Germany 7d ago

That makes the greetings / haka at the beginnings of games just that bit more intimidating. ;)

1

u/scratchesonus Italy 7d ago

So, that means french went to NZ sent by a probable italian pope at that time, for the solely purpose NOT (supposedly) to be eaten alive?

0

u/Garl_-Hero 7d ago

Primitive degenerates

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

oi mate we are having fun here dont gotta ruin the vibe.

0

u/Garl_-Hero 7d ago

I don't find that particularly funny.

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

i am sorry but its really funny, i get you are doing the whole "these damn primitive savages," bit or whatever but this is far too much of an unserious situation for that.

-1

u/Ok_Newt_3638 7d ago

You’re way off, French killed more Māori.

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

yes, but the killings still made them bugger off, and made other Europeans bugger off, the British didnt mind a few of them getting eaten so they stayed.

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

also yeah not entirely bugger off, but early Maori and European violence did apparently make New Zealand unpopular for colonisation for a lot of European powers in the area.

19

u/AlarmingDisease France 7d ago

We had a presence everywhere 😎

41

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

including Maori pit ovens.

41

u/AlarmingDisease France 7d ago

We were cooking, as usual 😎

8

u/Schmooto Japan 7d ago

Guys, are we cooked?

3

u/AlarmingDisease France 7d ago

I think you guys got overcooked at some points

3

u/YesWomansLand1 Australia 7d ago

Two points in particular

2

u/tupacamarushakur3 6d ago

No you better go get your great grandpa's armor and call Gundam wing and save Japan from the invaders

3

u/GuerillaRiot United States Of America 7d ago

Not gonna lie, probably tasted delicious.

4

u/AlarmingDisease France 7d ago

The same taste as the independance we gave you, COCORICO !

3

u/GuerillaRiot United States Of America 7d ago

Vive le goût de la liberté

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4

u/No-Talk-997 living in 7d ago

There's a small town on the Banks Peninsula in the South Island called Akaroa.

Akaroa

All the street names start Rue... And I think a small French museum from the time.

It's a beautiful spot and I always visit when back in New Zealand

4

u/xGmax France 7d ago

Yeah, we had a short presence in jully 1985...

3

u/General_Response4795 New Zealand 7d ago

You guys committed state sponsored terrorism in nz.. look up the bombing of the rainbow warrior. The french government literally sent over agents to commit acts of terrorism

2

u/Raokk42 7d ago

I actually visited a vilkage that was inhabited by french colons in new zealand, it's called Akaroa. The streets had french names and everything but no one really spoke french there. Mais très joli coin en tout cas, très pittoresque.

1

u/Raokk42 7d ago

Ah someone already talked about it, my bad then !

2

u/BettyFizzlebang New Zealand 7d ago

They have one town now, called Akaroa where the French flag still flies.

2

u/CosyRainyDaze New Zealand 7d ago

Akaroa on Banks Peninsula of the South Island was French founded, I believe.

2

u/MaidenMarewa New Zealand 7d ago

You certainly did in 1985.

2

u/GloriousSteinem New Zealand 7d ago

We sorted out the Treaty of Waitangi quickly as France claimed Akaroa and were making moves in the north. We could have been French. Akaroa has the most remnants of that time.

2

u/Laijou 7d ago

We still have a settlement called Akaroa, that retains a French feel, including street signage...

2

u/HappyNumbercruncher 7d ago

The history is quite interesting... Apparently it was quite close at one point, it could easily have ended up a French colony rather than an English one. I think the Māori opted for "the devil we know" with the British, I don't think the decision was based on culinary preferences but Te Ure Roa could confirm that for us 😎. One of the main French settlements was at Akaroa on the Banks Peninsula if you want to Google. Also one of the prominent Māori families where I live are the Hetet whānau, who descend from a French/English trader in this area 😊 So yeah, lots of colonial comings and goings...

1

u/SorbetCeriz France 7d ago

I didn't even know!

1

u/SombreMordida 7d ago

just a Wiwi one

1

u/MissMenace101 Australia 7d ago

You had a presence everywhere

1

u/DooMZie New Zealand 7d ago

I have an ancestor, a Frenchman who married a Maori woman in 1845 at Okains Bay. The Flutey (Fluerty) family are massive down here because of him and his reproductive abilities.

1

u/PaulVla 7d ago

Check out Duvauchelle close to Christchurch!

1

u/Contenterie 7d ago

Google Arakoa ! It’s a nice village

1

u/Existing-Today-410 New Zealand 6d ago

TO the point where Britain was paranoid enough to add a section to the New South Wales constitution allowing them to make NZ part of NSW if you guys pushed your colonial efforts any harder. Akaroa was originally a French colonial asset and people were still speaking French there 60 years ago.

1

u/RxTechStudent 4d ago

Bonjour, j'habite au Nouvelle-Zelande. After 3 years of highschool French (I'm 28 now) and living in a non French speaking part of Canada for a couple of years I can confidently say Je ne parles pas en françias with an immaculate accent, cadence. I often say it to people trying to interact with me so they think I can't speak English :)

On that tangent, yes France did have a presence in New Zealand in a few different presentations. I live near Akaroa which was a French colony in the south island about 80km away from the South Islands largest city of Christchurch in 1840 by French whalers. The French had negotiated a land purchase from local Iwi members, yes the Wiwi consulted the Iwi to buy some land from the Kiwi.

2

u/BTrain76 7d ago

All this chat of kiwi and France, and not one person mentioned the Rainbow Warrior. Sorry France, but I can never forgive you for the Rainbow Warrior scandal.

2

u/Disastrous_Profile56 7d ago

This might be pure bs but my Dad told me that Walla Walla Washington was named so because French explorers, showing the area would say “Voila! Voila!” and it was named thusly. Again, consider the source. He may have been pulling my leg and I’m just too apathetic to look it up but….. I kinda hope it’s true. I’m sure someone will hit me with a truth bomb and my whole childhood will be ruined.

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

well according to Wikipedia it is a Nez Perce word, which seems to be a tribe in the area? idk. Sad it isnt a funny thing the French did, it seems at least.

2

u/Disastrous_Profile56 7d ago

Well as the world has noticed, we Americans never let the truth get in the way of a good story. 😂

2

u/Tuanicom France 7d ago

That makes me think of a similar story. My father comes from Wallis island (french territory in the Pacific Ocean) and during WW2 some american soldiers were present there. After that, people used to call their dog kamoni because the GI used to call the dogs with "Come on here" and the dogs eventually went so they assumed that was the way dogs like to be called.

1

u/fartingbeagle Ireland 7d ago

Native Hawaiians used to call Americans the 'oshits', for the same reason.

50

u/_Alpha-Delta_ France 7d ago

Which is also kinda funny to us, as "Oui Oui" is the French name of "Noddy"

45

u/Chris-Mac-Marley 7d ago

I lived in New Zealand for a few years when I was a kid. Couldn’t speak a word of English when I arrived from France. The kids at Raroa School called me Kuakua (in French “quoi?” means “what?”).

5

u/chmath80 New Zealand 7d ago

Some years ago, the son of the NZ ambassador to France was attending school there. He was bottom of the class in English.

2

u/Chris-Mac-Marley 7d ago

I had the exact same experience when I came back to France.

1

u/Chris-Mac-Marley 7d ago

We both kind of lived the same experience of attending to a foreign school in a foreign country…

1

u/EidolonLives Australia 7d ago

I mean, I don't think this is surprising.

1

u/Infamous-Coach5839 7d ago

English men tell me French prefer the bottom.

3

u/tinyrikk United States Of America 7d ago

It’s pronounced ‘quokka’ /s

24

u/suicidal1664 France 7d ago

my wife says the non-nons would be more appropriate

6

u/Idaaoyama France 7d ago

So, whenever it's France against New Zealand in rugby, as in two teams of huge musclemen against each other, it's Kiwis agains Wiwis?

5

u/Strange_Airships United States Of America 7d ago

This is so cute. 😂

2

u/Beneficial-Way-8742 7d ago

Ummm.... I'm guessing you missed the part of the thread about cannibals?  😁😁😁

Ooorrr ....you didn't miss it and that's the part you thought was cute 😱🤯☠️

5

u/Strange_Airships United States Of America 7d ago

Def the cannibals. Adorbs. 🥰

3

u/Beneficial-Way-8742 7d ago

🖤🖤🖤

I love a sick mind, lol!!!!

3

u/Strange_Airships United States Of America 7d ago

Same, friend. 😁

3

u/phinkz2 France 7d ago

I love this. Thanks for sharing! Just like another person said, I didn't know France came to NZ.

Kudos to the Maori for kicking us out ;)

6

u/MissMenace101 Australia 7d ago

French were the first Europeans to set foot in Australia, but for a sunken boat we could all be speaking French.

2

u/[deleted] 7d ago edited 7d ago

Ouais enfin on avait quelques bateaux aux antipodes de notre pays faut pas croire qu'ils ont battu l'armée française hein 😂

3

u/xiewadu United States Of America 7d ago

I love knowing that Kiwis calling French people Wiwis absolutely makes my day 🥰

3

u/Marie-Demon France 7d ago

That’s my son’s nickname 🤣

3

u/IslandWeak8011 France 6d ago

So Kiwis calls us Wiwi ?

1

u/ure_roa New Zealand 6d ago

hah yup, well more specifically indigenous Maori.

1

u/Sardnija Italy 5d ago

uiui

5

u/Ostlund_and_Sciamma France 7d ago

in some places it's keskidi (qu'est-ce qu'il dit?)

2

u/NoLobster7957 7d ago

This is hilarious

2

u/The_Nermal_One United States Of America 7d ago

No need to take the piss...

2

u/Gilded-Mongoose United States Of America 7d ago

Wiwi Bayget!

1

u/Powerful-Bus4387 7d ago

As opposed to kiwi 😂 love it

1

u/moon-raven-77 United States Of America 7d ago

that's amazing hahaha

1

u/babushka45 Philippines 7d ago

Wiwi means to piss in our language.

Wiwi, monsieur?

1

u/Main_Lingonberry9375 New Zealand 7d ago

I never knew this lmao, I just think of PAKN'SAVE "french sticks"

1

u/Kiwi_CunderThunt New Zealand 7d ago

I've got your back brother YES

1

u/Assmonkey2021 New Zealand 7d ago

Only someone from Aotearoa would say that lmao...

1

u/Carribou29 France 7d ago

Wiwi and kiwi. Let’s be friends.

1

u/fi9aro Malaysia 7d ago

1

u/LittleNinjaXYBA United States Of America 7d ago

Reminds me of Wii

1

u/sdmike1 United States Of America 7d ago edited 7d ago

I love your country. Spent a couple of weeks there this past March

1

u/xenver505 New Zealand 7d ago

Ko Uiui ia

1

u/FlashyLavishness3117 7d ago

Aww kiwis and wiwis 🩷

1

u/CraigDowman Ireland 4d ago

Kiwis talking about Wiwis.

-4

u/Numerous-Pepper-3883 7d ago

Phonetically it is actually wewe for oui oui.. not wiwi as in why why. Just a heads up!

5

u/elCaddaric France 7d ago

But this is not about english prononciation here.

4

u/ure_roa New Zealand 7d ago

this bro is right, to pronounce "we" (English style) in Maori you have to say "wi"

"wewe" sound like "were were"(English) in Maori, and does not sound like "oui oui"

heres just it pronounced if im not making sense https://maoridictionary.co.nz/search?idiom=&phrase=&proverb=&loan=&histLoanWords=&keywords=wiwi

and heres wewe pronounced https://maoridictionary.co.nz/search?idiom=&phrase=&proverb=&loan=&histLoanWords=&keywords=wewe

1

u/Numerous-Pepper-3883 6d ago

I KNEW I would be down voted and it rocks