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Pétanque
Pétanque or boules is a French game where the
aim is, while standing inside a starting circle with
both feet on the ground, to throw hollow metal
balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball
called a cochonnet (literally “piglet”) or jack. The
current form of the game originated in 1907 in La
Ciotat, in Provence, in southern France.
The English and French name pétanque comes
from petanca in the Provençal dialect of the
Occitan language, deriving from the expression
pès tancats, meaning “feet together” or more
exactly “feet anchored”. The casual form of the
game of pétanque is played by about 17 million
people in France. It is also widely played in Spain,
England, United States, Quebec, Canada, Laos,
north Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.
In the Royal School French classes from 1st
Year, 2nd Year and 5th Year enjoyed a game of
Pétanque in the sunshine!
30 The Royal Times 2011-2012
