How it all started is still a mistery.
Of course, in good food tradition, the French claim to be the inventors of our beloved fries: they originated in Paris on the Pont Neuf (fries are still called like that in the chique French restaurants) somewhere in the middle of the 19th century. As with most "French" inventions, they forgot to note the name of the inventor and they are still searching for proof. As we will see later, even the word "French Fries" has nothing to do with the French.
(note, they never do get around to that.)
(Snip)
Why are they called "French Fries"?
Explanation 1: the French invented fries, that's why we call them French Fries. Wrong, as we have seen above.
Explanation 2: during the first World War, American soldiers came to our country and discovered our fries. As the inhabitants spoke French (the biggest battles were fought in Ieper near the French border), the soldiers called them French Fries. Wrong again.
In fact, the explanation is quite simple: in English, 'to french' means (or at least meant) 'to cut into lengthwise pieces'. You probably know 'frenched beans'. So logically, French Fries is short for 'frenched and fried potatoes'. In fact, the English call them 'chips', a word which has a similar meaning (a chipped piece of wood).
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