The fact that some people call their children Clitorine in unwitting reference to the clitoris (which incidentally is the same word in French in case you were searching for it) seems to be quite widely accepted in France.
Except that they don't.
The data from French statistics body INSEE does not list it, neither does the Paris electoral roll or the register of deaths.
It seems that the nearest this has ever come to being a real name was in the title of a series of pornographic novels from the 1970s.
So how did it get started?
Well we can't find an exact source for this rumour, but Baptiste Coulmont, a professor of sociology at Université Paris 8 writing in French newspaper Le Monde, suggests that the weird name performs an important social function – namely sparing people embarrassment.
Stick with us here.
He says: “Discussions about baby names always present a small danger. 'Ah, is it a boy? Have you thought of a name? Anything but Arthur, I hope!'
“But the joke is over when you discover that they had indeed thought of Arthur for the little one. Embarrassing moment.
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