The Legend of the “Dent du Chat”

You cannot leave Savoie without knowing the legend of the “Dent du Chat”. What is called The Tooth of the Cat is that tooth-shaped mountain overlooking the Bourget Lake. It is a lovely hike at the end of which you can enjoy an exceptional view over the lake and the valley. But I bet you wonder why it’s called that way? The legend tells the tale of a poor fisherman going out on his small boat day after day without ever catching a fish. Imploring the heavens to give him one, he promises to release back into the water the first one to be caught. Not long after, he catches a silver fish; rather bothered he promises to release the next one. However, the next catch reveals itself to be a golden fish! Again, he promises to release the next one. Yet, this time, he catches a little cat. Remember this is a Legend so don’t look for logic here… Not wanting to return the poor cat to the water, even though it came from it, the fisherman rows to the shore and leaves the kitten at the mountain foothills. There, the cat turns into a savage beast and goes off into the mountain, eating up men, women, and children along the way. Two brave knights, Melius and Bérius, set out on a mission to free the people from the fierce creature. Once the beast is killed, they planted its tooth as a trophy, giving its shape to the mountain. In gratitude, the inhabitants offered Melianus a mountain, which he named Mont Melianus, becoming the city of Montmélian. To Bérius they gave a field, or champs in French, which he named Berius field, making up Chambéry ! There you have it; you now know the true etymology of Chambéry.