Station: [1] Who were the Huguenots?

Hello, and welcome to the German Huguenot Museum. Here, on the premises of an old cigar factory, we'll be exploring the history of France's Reformed Christians, the Huguenots. This audio guide will allow us to escort you on the tour, which has 25 stops. 
For centuries, the history of the Huguenots was defined by the persecution they suffered in the name of the French crown. They were prohibited from leaving France, yet thousands of them fled their home country so they could practise their Reformed faith. Following their flight and resettlement in Protestant countries, the Huguenot faith and culture spread to many parts of the world – including Bad Karlshafen, a town established more than 300 years ago to provide a refuge to the Huguenots. 
The word Huguenot, pronounced [yɡ (ə)no] in French, started life as an insult, a derisive nickname for France's Reformed Christians. 
The earliest instance of the name "Huguenots" occurred in an old French manuscript in 1551. That historical document describes iconoclasts as an "evil race of Huguenots". But where did the term "Huguenot" actually originate, and what does it mean? The question still gives rise to plenty of stories and theories.
If you look up the term "Huguenot" in an etymological dictionary, you usually find that it's derived from the German word "Eidgenossen", which means "confederates" and refers to the Swiss. 
However, research into the Huguenots has since abandoned this explanation of the term's origin. Which means we still don't know where it comes from. 
Some writers refer to an old legend from the French city of Tours. There, a certain King Hugo, long since dead, was said to have roamed the streets at night as a spectre, panicking the townsfolk. In around 1550, a Roman Catholic monk made a joke about Protestants in his sermon. Because they were forced to gather in secret at night, he called them "little Hugos", or "Huguenots". 
So it's no longer possible to establish the origins of the name. What's important is that the term Huguenot has changed from a disdainful nickname to an honourable designation for French Reformed Christians.

Foto: © DHG