Why do we say that anyway? In French, when you feel blue, you "have the cockroach" (j'ai le cafard) or you "grind some black" (je broye du noir). In French, avoir une peur bleue (to have a "blue" fright or fear) means to be scared stiff or scared to death.
I doubt that these bellflowers will have such effects on anybody. They grow along the front of our house, by the front door.
They were already here when we came to live here in 2003. They're called campanules in French, and they come back every spring.
If you know what variety they are, please share that information. There seem to be dozens or even scores of different campanules, including many hybrids.
I've a feeling campanules is their botanic name. I certainly know the name, so perhaps it is used as a common name here.
ReplyDeleteCampanula = bell-flower. But as to a varietal name, I haven't a clue. This form is very common in the UK.
ReplyDeleteAnd in dated upper-crust British English slang, you could occasionally be "in a blue funk", meaning scared silly - more commonly said disparagingly of someone else.
After some quick and dirty research, I believe this is the "wall bellflower" — campanule des murailles.
DeleteVery pretty.
ReplyDeleteThey are well named and lovely.
ReplyDeleteCes petites clochettes sont ravissantes!
ReplyDeleteClochettes = bellflower.;-) Nice, they're a great color. Do they spread a little each year? our beaches open today, but you can;t park there and can't lay there. You can run or swim there with a mask. Assuming it doesn't mean a mask in the water too.
ReplyDeleteclochete = campanella, small bell in Italian, i. e campanule QED
Deleteclochette, i'm sorry.
DeleteThese bellflowers we bought when we bought this house really are beautiful. And faithful. Hope you are doing well, CHM.
DeleteAble to walk a few feet with the help of a walker once a day. Rehab is very slow!
DeleteAhhh, they just add such a nice splash of uplifting color!
ReplyDelete"Am I blue...."?
DeleteI've always liked those flowers, whatever they're called.
ReplyDeleteAnd I am intrigued by the definition from Autolycus of "blue funk", because I've understood it to mean "down in the dumps", feeling glum or bad about something.
Dictionary.com gives both meanings for "funk":
Delete1. cowering fear; state of great fright or terror.
2. a dejected mood: He's been in a funk ever since she walked out on him.
It also gives this definition of "blue funk":
(slang) a state of great terror or loss of nerve
I wonder how we get "funky" from those meanings.