{"id":23478,"date":"2016-06-15T12:17:02","date_gmt":"2016-06-15T10:17:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=23478"},"modified":"2017-10-25T13:07:51","modified_gmt":"2017-10-25T11:07:51","slug":"two-front-doors-special-french-addresses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/two-front-doors-special-french-addresses\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Front Doors! – Special French Addresses"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"french<\/a>

“Num\u00e9ro 056 bis”<\/a> by Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Gornet on Flickr. LIcensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.<\/p><\/div>\n

Using La Poste<\/strong><\/a> and knowing what your adresse<\/strong><\/a> is solves most of your mail related problems in France. There is however another aspect of French addresses that I did not understand for a very long time.<\/p>\n

Sometimes une adresse<\/strong> has a number followed by the word bis<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

I didn’t know what the bis<\/strong> <\/em>meant until I realized that the bis<\/strong> <\/em>in those addresses is the same bis<\/strong> <\/em>in une ann\u00e9e bissextile<\/strong><\/a>! It means it’s the same as the previous number! In the photo above that means a second 56<\/em>. However, that didn\u2019t help me understand why there would ever be a second 56<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Eh bien<\/strong> (well), it has to do with how what counts as une parcelle<\/strong> (a plot). When une rue<\/strong> (a street) is made, each parcelle<\/strong> is given a number representing its adresse<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Les parcelles<\/strong> are numbered according to local laws in regards to which end has the lower numbers and which side of the street uses les nombres pairs<\/strong> (even numbers) and which side uses les nombres impairs<\/strong> (odd numbers).<\/p>\n

Cela dit<\/strong> (that said), once la rue<\/strong> is already built and les parcelles<\/strong> already have their numbers, they can still be split. What was originally une parcelle<\/strong> with une adresse<\/strong> could become multiple parcelles<\/strong> that each need une adresse<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

All those new parcelles<\/strong> have the same street number, but have a special mention<\/strong> (distinction), either an a, b, c<\/em>\u2026 or bis, ter, quater\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n

Similarly, if someone buys multiple parcelles <\/strong>that each have different street numbers, a new one is created that combines their numbers. So what was numbers 1 and 3<\/em> would become 1-3<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Vous \u00eates perdus ?<\/strong>
\nAre you lost?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s a little confusing, so lets take a look at a simplified example.<\/p>\n

Imagine a Rue de France<\/em>, une rue imaginaire <\/strong>(an imaginary street) that only has 9 parcelles<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\"ruedefrance1\"<\/a> One day some of the owners decide to scinder<\/strong> (split) their parcelles<\/strong> creating new addresses on the street:<\/p>\n

\"ruedefrance2\"<\/a>Each new parcelle<\/strong> has its own unique adresse<\/strong>. 1 bis Rue de France<\/strong> is different from 1 Rue de France<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Then someone decides to buy multiple parcelles<\/strong> and turn them into a single unit, creating more new addresses on our Rue de France<\/em>:\"ruedefrance3-2\"<\/a>The new 2-4 Rue de France<\/strong> and 5-7 Rue de France<\/strong> have distinct addresses.<\/p>\n

It can be a little difficult to understand, but you won’t get confused when someone says:<\/p>\n

J’habite<\/a> 8 bis Rue de France !<\/strong>
\nI live on 8 bis Rue de France!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Using La Poste and knowing what your adresse is solves most of your mail related problems in France. There is however another aspect of French addresses that I did not understand for a very long time. Sometimes une adresse has a number followed by the word bis. I didn’t know what the bis meant until…<\/p>\n

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