Meaning of vive la France

*
Share / Tweet / pen Me!

The expression vive la France involves life every so often, especially roughly 14 July and also during the people Cup. Gain le scoop on what that actually method as well as just how it’s spelled and also pronounced through this in-depth analysis.

You are watching: What does vive la france mean


Vive la France in ~ a glance

TranslationLong live France!
Registernormal
Pronunciation
*
IPA

Meaning and also usage

You most likely won’t hear the patriotic exclamation Vive la France! much more than a couple of times a year; it has tendency to be reserved for occasions like Bastille Day, French elections, worldwide sports, and, sadly, national tragedy.

Vive la France simply means "long live France" and is a means to celebrate gift French and also express proud in French accomplishments. It’s similar to exclamations like “God bless America” and “God conserve the Queen,” other than the evident lack of religious reference in the French expression. It’s practically always came before by Vive la République ! and is periodically accompanied by various other rousing expressions, as you have the right to hear in these excerpts.

*
 Vive la France in action

Examples that vive la France in real-life videos from Lawless French Immersion:

Vive la République, vive la France !Long live the Republic, lengthy live France!
Video: ‘We room at war’: Macron place France right into lockdown
Le philosophe spécialiste de la philosophie politique que vous êtes, il regarde ça, et il se dit : “Vive la République, vive la France” ?When see that, you, together a thinker specializing in politics philosophy, do you tell yourself: “Long live the Republic, lengthy live France”?
Video: “The Crown” seen from France
Vive Chirac, vive la France !Long live Chirac, long live France!
Video: Macron access time explosion website in Beirut, pledges support to Lebanon
Vive la République, vive la France !Long live the Republic, lengthy live France!
Video: Emmanuel Macron wins historical French election

 Common spelling mistake: "viva" la France

Non-native French speakers regularly write viva la France, probably because of the affect of the ax Viva ras Vegas and/or as result of the truth that the -e in ~ the end of vive is occasionally pronounced. However, viva is not a French word: it’s Spanish, Italian, or Portuguese. Also so, viva la France go not typical “long live France” in any kind of of those languages; that would certainly be viva Francia, viva la Francia, and also viva França, respectively.

See more: How Many Sides On A Cube Definition With Calculator, What Is A Cube

 Grammar note

Vive is the 3rd person singular subjunctive of the verb vivre (to live). It was originally used as a third person command in this kind of expression, however most grammarians now consider it one invariable presentative.*

Similar Expressions

Vive is likewise used with various other cherished points or people, such together

vive l’amour – hurray because that lovevive la différence – long live the difference (typically between men and women)vive les mariés* – lengthy live the bride and groomvive la reine / le roi – long live the queen / kingvive les vacances* – hurray for holidays / the holidays

* Think these must be plural, together in vivent les Bleus, vivent les mariés, vivent les vacances? follow to Le Bon Usage, vive is invariable in this form of construction. Some aboriginal French speakers disagree, and also conjugate it together vive or vivent follow to the number of the noun it precedes.

You’re likely to encounter other expressions in movies and also ads: vive les femmes (hurray because that women), vive les produits pays (hurray for regional products), Vive le vent (“long live the wind” – a French Christmas carol), etc. Occasionally they even make it into the news:vive le Lance – lengthy live Lance vive le Tour, forever – lengthy live the Tour, forever (Lance Armstrong, in his taking leave speech)vive le Québec libre – lengthy live free Quebec (General Charles de Gaulle, throughout a controversial decided in Montreal in 1967)vive les racailles – lengthy live scumbags (one that the responses come then-Interior Minister Nicholas Sarkozy’s comment just prior to les émeutes des banlieues de 2005)

Related features

Patriotic French expressions