An earlier post (Ferme La Bouche IV) got us curious.

We are always being reminded how finical the French are about their language. Its Frenchness. Its correct use. Its orthography. There is an official Academy that polices all this and hands out prizes and spankings for punctiliousness or lack thereof.

Yet on the official government site for the president of France, "Élysée" is spelled "Elysée", without its proper accent aigu on the lead "E".

ELYSÉE OU ÉLYSÉE ?
Where Are The French Language Mutawallees?

The Dictionnaire de l'Académie française -- the be-all of the French language -- gives only the one spelling, "Élysée".

Its third definition reads:

Auj. (avec une majuscule). Le palais de l'Élysée, résidence du chef de l'État à Paris et siège de la présidence de la République française.

No mistaking that. And it specifically gives the metonym (itself an ellipsis of "palais de l'Élysée"):

Par méton. La présidence de la République française. Le rôle de l'Élysée dans la politique du pays. Être candidat à l'Élysée.

And there is no metaplastic "Elysée" in the Academy's Rectifications orthographiques françaises de 1990.

None of the state or local government sites we visited included the diacritic. French newspapers have dropped it. Théâtre des Champs Élysées retains it, while Théâtre de Guignol aux Champs-Elysées has dropped it. Some maps do, others don't. The Columbia Encyclopedia retains it as do other English reference works.

So what's the story?

Jack had best get on the stick and defend French a little closer to home. Starting with the name of his home.

PFFT (What is this?): Another French crisis? 2 | Rayonnement français 0