 Originally a hamlet within the independent commune (municipality) of Belleville, Ménilmontant was, like other suburban communes surrounding the French capital, absorbed into the city of Paris in 1860.The name is said to derive from "Mesnil Mautemps", meaning "bad weather house".By the 16th century "mautemps" had been corrupted into "montant" (meaning "climbing"), probably owing to its situation on a hill overlooking Paris.