It is the treasure of every child who, once the bells have returned from Rome, looks for it in the garden.
Whether in the form of an egg, a rabbit, or simply a square, "chocolate" delights young and old alike.
Borrowed from the Spanish “chocolate” which, in 1598, gave the identical French form “chocolate”, the word comes from the Nahuatl (language spoken by the Aztecs) “chocolatl”, formed with “atl” (“water”) and "xococ" ("bitter").
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Imported into Europe from the 16th century, through the “cocoa” bean, the flagship food of Easter and the end of year celebrations has given rise to many expressions.
Also we speak of “chocolate box”, figuratively, and we say “to make chocolate” or “to be chocolate”.
“She's just got a little bill paid, that's all.
And she's afraid to leave with chocolate"
, wrote Paul Bourget in
Our Acts We Follow
, in 1926. In 2010, the French Chocolate Academy had the idea of launching a world day dedicated to it, so much this confectionery, which inspired from Roald Dahl to Lasse Hallström - who is familiar with the film
Le Chocolat
(2000), with Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche - pleases and fascinates.
But where does this sweetness come from?
What are the different meanings of the word “chocolate”?
In what year did the French taste it for the first time?
Le Figaro
invites you to test your knowledge.