FAUBOURG

faubourg, the french name for a portion of a town which lies outside the walls, hence properly a suburb. the name survives in certain parts of paris, such as the faubourg st antoine, and the faubourg st germain, &c., which have long since ceased to be suburbs and have become portions of the town itself. the origin of the word is doubtful. the earlier spelling _faux-bourg_, and the occurrence in medieval latin of _falsus-burgus_ (see ducange, _glossarium_, s.v. "falsus-burgus"), was taken as showing its obvious origin and meaning, the sham or quasi-borough. the generally accepted derivation is from _fors_, outside (lat. _foris_, outside the gates), and _bourg_. it is suggested that the word is the french adaptation of the ger. _pfahlburger_, the burghers of the pale, i.e. outside the walls but within the pale. fauces (a latin plural word for "throat"; the singular _faux_ is rarely found), in anatomy, the hinder part of the mouth, which leads into the pharynx; also an architectural term given by vitruvius to narrow passages on either side of the tablinum, through which access could be obtained from the atrium to the peristylar court in the rear.