The Académie Française

We know this: this building is magnificent, raised up by geniuses and great minds, and yet when they first wrote the French dictionary, they forgot the word "French."

But let's start at the beginning, because the story of the Académie Française begins with a secret. In the late 1620s, nine writers were quietly meeting in the private home of a man named Valentin Conrart. No official agenda, no government backing, just a small circle of people who loved language and literature. Then Cardinal Richelieu found out. And Richelieu, being Richelieu, decided the group would serve the state. The writers were not exactly thrilled, but they had little say in the matter.

Since 1635, the Académie has maintained exactly 40 members, never more, never fewer. They are called the Immortals, which sounds grand until you remember that they do, in fact, all die. When a seat opens, it stays empty until the remaining members elect a replacement. New members must also stay silent during official meetings for a full year before they are allowed to speak. It's like there are electing a new pope.

And after 59 years of careful, dedicated work, the first edition of their dictionary finally appeared in 1694, without the word "français" anywhere inside it.