author
J.-E. (Jean-Eugène) Decorde
1811–1881
A 19th-century French priest with a deep interest in local history and language, he wrote vivid studies of Normandy’s towns, churches, and regional speech. His work still stands out for the care he gave to places and traditions that might otherwise have been forgotten.
1 Audiobook
Dictionnaire du patois du pays de Bray
by J.-E. (Jean-Eugène) Decorde
About the author
Born in Bois-Héroult in 1811, Jean-Eugène Decorde was a French Catholic priest who spent much of his life serving parishes in Normandy. Sources agree that he was ordained in 1835, served as parish priest of Bures from 1836 to 1870, and then at Notre-Dame-d'Aliermont until his death in 1881.
Alongside his pastoral work, he became known as a historian of the Pays de Bray and nearby parts of Seine-Maritime. He wrote historical and archaeological studies of local cantons and communes, and he is especially remembered for Dictionnaire du patois du pays de Bray, a record of regional vocabulary that reflects both scholarly curiosity and affection for everyday speech.
His books have lasting value because they preserve small-scale local history: churches, customs, place names, and dialect words that larger histories often leave out. For listeners interested in regional France, Decorde offers the perspective of a careful observer who knew the area from the inside.