Every now and then, people ask about the French side of my family. So I’ve put together this page to bring together a short summary of where my family and name comes from.

Family Tree

My father was born in Corbie, and raised in Villers-Bretonneux (see the official web site). It’s a small village near Amiens (and not too far from Paris) in the north-western part of France.

My grandparents, Emile A. Friant and Jeanne F Dinouard, have both passed away. Of Emile’s children, only my father has left France, my aunt, uncle, and cousins still live in France, some near Villers Bretonneux.

My Great-Grandparents were Aurèle Emile Friant and Antoinette Marie Vimeux. Married in 1922, they had 18 children.

Descendants of Friant, Aurèle

  1. Friant, Aurèle (? – ?)
    • sp. Friant, Marie (? – ?)
  2. Friant, Aurèle Emile (1902 – 1974)
    • sp. Vimeux, Antoinette Marie Henriette (1901 – 1979)
  3. Friant, Emile Aurèle Ulysse (1929 – 1996)
    • sp. Dinouard, Jeanne Fernande Eugénie Honorine (1931 – 2010)

Past Events

Some famous battles during World War 1 took place in and around the village, and unfortunately due to that fact, many historical records were destroyed. My grandfather, Emile, had done some research on the family tree and found that the birth records he needed to trace the family back were among those destroyed.

So while there were some famous people with the last name Friant, such as General Louis Friant, and the painter Emile Friant, we may never know if they are related to my family in any way.