Frankrike (Rike of the Franks) in Swedish and Norwegian, Frankrig in Danish. Meanings of the name France The name "France" (and its adjective "French") can have four different meanings which it is important to distinguish in order to avoid ambiguities. Its origin is the Germanic word "frank" which means "free" and is also a male name. Political meaning In a first meaning, "France" means the whole French Republic. In that case, "French" refers to the nationality, as it is written on the French ID card: "Nationalité : française". The etymology and meaning of the word "France" and "French" have had strong bearings in the abolition of slavery and serfdom in France. Indeed, in 1315, king Louis X issued an edict reaffirming that slavery was illegal in France by proclaiming that "France signifies freedom", that any slave setting foot on (metropolitan) French ground should be freed. Centuries later, this decree served as the basis for a group of crusading lawyers at the parlement of Paris, many of whom were members of the Society of the Friends of the Blacks, winning unprecedented emancipation rights in a series of cases before the French revolution, which (temporarily) led to the complete abolition of slavery on French overseas territories and colonies in 1794 until Napoleon, propped up by the plantation lobbies, re-introduced slavery in sugarcane-growing colonies. Geographical meaning In a second meaning, "France" refers to metropolitan France only, meaning mainland France. Historical meanings In a third meaning, "France" refers specifically to the province of the Île-de-France (with Paris at its centre) which historically was the heart of the royal demesne. This meaning is found in some geographic names, such as French Brie (Brie française) and French Vexin (Vexin français). French Brie, the area where the famous Brie cheese is produced, is the part of Brie that was annexed to the royal demesne, as opposed to Champagne Brie (Brie champenoise) which was annexed by Champagne. Likewise, French Vexin was the part of Vexin inside Île-de-France, as opposed to Norman Vexin (Vexin normand) which was inside Normandy. In a fourth meaning, "France" refers only to the Pays de France, one of the several pays (Latin: pagi, singular pagus) of the Île-de-France. French provinces were typically made up of multiple pays, which were the direct continuation of the pagi set up by the Roman administration during Antiquity. The Île-de-France included the Pays de France, Parisis, Hurepoix, French Vexin,