When they trade in their francs for euros next year, the French will be giving up more than 600 years of history -- and many will simply respond with a Gallic shrug.
After all, the things that really matter will stay.
"Cheese, wine, bread -- they are French symbols," says Jean-Claude, a waiter at a central Paris bistro. "The franc is gone. Now we have to prepare for the euro."
His colleague, Aberki, agrees: "Beaujolais will still come every year, whether you pay with francs or euros it doesn't matter."
This insouciance contrasts sharply with the mild angst among Germans, who see a symbol of their post-war success dying when the deutsche mark disappears, or the British sKepticism that fuels an emotional "Save the Pound" campaign.
But after centuries of living in a continent ravaged by war, most French want to secure a united Europe. They also see a brighter economic future with the single currency.
"It will help the economy, so it's a good thing," says 30-year-old Stephane Bougault, who runs a Paris news stand.
By pooling their monetary sovereignty with 11 European peers, the French are embarking on a project that will unite the region in a fashion not seen since the times of the Roman emperor Diocletian.
Getting to this stage was a near thing.
Despite bipartisan political support for the single currency in France, the French people only just chose accept it. In a 1992 referendum, they voted by only 51 percent for the Maastricht Treaty which paved the way for the euro.
The slim margin is widely attributed to waning popularity at the time for then President Francois Mitterrand.
The road to the single currency was also painful for France.
Maintaining a strong franc in the European exchange rate mechanism, a precursor to monetary union, slowed the economy because Paris had to keep its interest rates at the high level set by Germany's Bundesbank.
The French feel that by resisting the temptation to devalue their currency in the run up to the euro's launch they have earned a strong voice at the European Central Bank (ECB) -- and they are determined to use it.
President Jacques Chirac got Christian Noyer, a Frenchman, appointed ECB Vice President and forced ECB head Wim Duisenberg to announce he would step down before his full term is over to make way for Bank of France Governor Jean-Claude Trichet.
There remains some French opposition to the euro, however.
Maverick left-wing politician Jean-Pierre Chevenement, who hopes to be a spoiler candidate in next year's presidential election, has called for a suspension of the euro's introduction to counter the economic risks from the US attacks.
Chevenement, whose proud patriotism also makes him popular among right-wingers, fears the euro will mean a loss of sovereignty for the strong French republic he champions.
The franc has long been a symbol of the French state and all coins bear the words "liberte, egalite, fraternite" (liberty, equality, fraternity) -- the principles of the French Revolution.
"The state has given a certain value to the franc," says Olivier Bidou, president of the Association for a Memorial to the Franc. "Today, as the franc disappears, a small part of the value of the state is disappearing."
The first franc was minted in gold in 1360 after the English released France's King Jean le Bon (John the Good) from captivity. The word "franc" meant "free" and member of the Frankish people.
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