Happy Bastille Day

In 1988 I caught Les Miserables on Broadway, and a couple years later I read the novel. Since then I've become a major Hugophile, and somewhat of a Francophile, particularly of their literature. (I'm also a fan of Montaigne, Moliere, Baudelaire, and the modern Oulipo movement.)

There used to be rumors in my family that the Cruvant surname had French origins, but I think that was based more on sound than on research. When research was conducted by a cousin, she found the surname most likely originated in Kruvandia, Lithuania.

I have found some 'French' ancestors though in my mother's lineage. I put the word in quotation marks, because the ancestors would have considered themselves German. A couple generations lived in Alsace while it was under control of Germany. It's now France, though, and it may be the closest I will get to claiming French heritage.