fainéants

Fainéants is a French term that translates to "do-nothing" or "lazy person." Historically, the term was specifically used to describe the later Merovingian kings of Francia, a Germanic dynasty that ruled from the 5th to the 8th centuries. These kings were characterized by their declining political power, with real authority often wielded by their chief ministers, the Mayors of the Palace. The image of the fainéant king became a powerful symbol of dynastic decline and the rise of new power structures.

The concept of the fainéant king suggests a ruler who, while nominally holding the throne, was largely detached from the actual governance of the kingdom. This detachment could be due to a variety of factors, including a lack of personal ambition, incapacitation, or simply the concentration of power in the hands of others. Chroniclers of the time, often writing from the perspective of the succeeding Carolingian dynasty, portrayed these Merovingian rulers as largely irrelevant figures who spent their time in idleness.

While the historical context of the fainéant kings is specific, the term "fainéant" itself has broadened to simply mean a lazy or idle person in modern French. It is used to describe someone who avoids work or effort, often in a somewhat dismissive or critical way. The historical connotation of political impotence has largely faded, leaving behind the more general meaning of indolence.