belle époque

or Belle Époque

[ bel ey-pawk ]

noun

, French.

, plural belles é·poques [bel, ey-, pawk].

1. the period (1871–1914) between the end of the Franco-Prussian War and the outbreak of World War I, characterized by relative peacefulness in Western Europe and by marked advances and productivity in the arts, literature, technology, etc.

belle époque

/ bɛl epɔk /

noun

1. the period of comfortable well-established life in Europe before World War I

Word History and Origins

Origin of belle époque¹

Literally, “beautiful epoch”

Word History and Origins

Origin of belle époque¹

literally: fine period

Example Sentences

A century ago Odessa was a glorious city of the Belle Epoque.

From The Daily Beast

Tweeters compared the new "psychodrama" to Feydeau, the Belle Epoque playwright famed for bedroom farce.

From The Daily Beast