Jacobin

In the context of the French Revolution, a Jacobin originally meant a member of the Jacobin Club (1789-1794). But even while the Club still existed, the name of Jacobins had been popularly applied to all promulgators of extreme revolutionary opinions; "Jacobin democracy" for example is synonymous with totalitarian democracy. In contemporary France this term refers to the concept of a centralised Republic, with power concentrated in the national government, at the expense of local or regional governments. Similarly, Jacobinism sought to stamp out minority languages in France, such as Breton, Basque, Provençal and Alsatian, which it perceived as reactionary. This influenced French educational policy until well into the twentieth century.

See also

• Helvetia
• Germania
• Marianne
• Uncle Sam
• John Bull
• Johnny Canuck
• Johnny Reb
• Deutscher Michel
• Aura the Finnish Maiden