Regions of France explained

Regions of France
Category:Unitary republic
Territory:France
Current Number:18
Population Range:279,471 (Mayotte) – 12,997,058 (Île-de-France)
Area Range:376sqkm (Mayotte) – 84061sqkm (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
Government:Regional Government, National Government
Subdivision:Department
Status:Overseas region (French: région d'outre-mer) (5)
Exofficio:Territorial collectivity (French: collectivité territoriale)

France is divided into eighteen administrative regions (French: régions, singular French: région pronounced as /fr/), of which thirteen are located in metropolitan France (in Europe), while the other five are overseas regions (not to be confused with the overseas collectivities, which have a semi-autonomous status).[1]

All of the thirteen metropolitan administrative regions (including Corsica) are further subdivided into two to thirteen administrative departments, with the prefect of each region's administrative centre's department also acting as the regional prefect. The overseas regions administratively consist of only one department each and hence also have the status of overseas departments.

Most administrative regions also have the status of regional territorial collectivities, which comes with a local government, with departmental and communal collectivities below the region level. The exceptions are Corsica, French Guiana, Mayotte and Martinique, where region and department functions are managed by single local governments having consolidated jurisdiction and which are known as single territorial collectivities.

History

1982–2015

The term French: région was officially created by the Law of Decentralisation (2 March 1982), which also gave regions their legal status. The first direct elections for regional representatives took place on 16 March 1986.[2]

Between 1982 and 2015, there were 22 regions in Metropolitan France. Before 2011, there were four overseas regions (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Réunion); in 2011 Mayotte became the fifth.

+Regions of France between 2011 and 2015
RegionFrench nameOther local name(s)INSEE No.[3] CapitalDerivation or etymology
AlsaceFrench: [[:fr:Alsace|Alsace]]Alsatian

Swiss German; Alemannic; Alsatian: Elsàss
German: Elsass

42StrasbourgFormerly a coalition of free cities in Holy Roman Empire, attached to Kingdom of France in 1648; annexed by Germany from Franco-Prussian war to the end of World War I and briefly during World War II
AquitaineFrench: [[:fr:Aquitaine (ancienne région)|Aquitaine]]Occitan (post 1500);: Aquitània
Basque: Akitania
Saintongeais : Aguiéne
72BordeauxGuyenne and Gascony
AuvergneFrench: [[:fr:Auvergne|Auvergne]]Occitan (post 1500);: Auvèrnhe / Auvèrnha83Clermont-FerrandFormer province of Auvergne
BrittanyFrench: [[:fr:Région Bretagne|Bretagne]]Breton: Breizh
Gallo

French: Bertaèyn

53RennesDuchy of Brittany
BurgundyFrench: [[:fr:Bourgogne (ancienne région administrative)|Bourgogne]]Burgundian

BregogneBorgoégne
Borgogne

26DijonDuchy of Burgundy
Centre-Val de Loire[4] French: [[:fr:Centre-Val de Loire|Centre-Val de Loire]]24OrléansLocated in north-central France; straddles the middle of the Loire Valley
Champagne-ArdenneFrench: [[:fr:Champagne-Ardenne|Champagne-Ardenne]]21Châlons-en-
Champagne
Former province of Champagne
CorsicaFrench: [[:fr:Corse|Corse ]]94Ajaccio
Franche-ComtéFrench: [[:fr:Franche-Comté|Franche-Comté]]Franc-Comtois

Fràntche-Comté
Franche-Comtât

43BesançonFree County of Burgundy (Franche-Comté)
Île-de-FranceFrench: [[:fr:Île-de-France|Île-de-France]]11ParisProvince of Île-de-France and parts of the former province of Champagne
Languedoc-RoussillonFrench: [[:fr:Languedoc-Roussillon|Languedoc-Roussillon]]Occitan (post 1500);: Lengadòc-Rosselhon
Catalan; Valencian: Llenguadoc-Rosselló
91MontpellierFormer provinces of Languedoc and Roussillon
LimousinFrench: [[:fr:Limousin|Limousin]]Occitan (post 1500);: Lemosin74LimogesFormer province of Limousin and parts of Marche, Berry, Auvergne, Poitou and Angoumois
LorraineFrench: [[:fr:Lorraine (ancienne région administrative)|Lorraine]]German: Lothringen
Lorraine Franconian

Lottringe

41MetzNamed for Charlemagne's son Lothair I, the kingdom of Lotharingia is etymologically the source for the name Lorraine (duchy),, Lottringe (Lorraine Franconian)
Lower NormandyFrench: [[:fr:Basse-Normandie|Basse-Normandie]]Norman

Basse-Normaundie
Breton: Normandi-Izel

25Caen
Midi-PyrénéesFrench: [[:fr:Midi-Pyrénées|Midi-Pyrénées]]Occitan (post 1500);: Miègjorn-Pirenèus
Occitan (post 1500);: Mieidia-Pirenèus
73ToulouseNone; created for Toulouse
Nord-Pas-de-CalaisFrench: [[:fr:Nord-Pas-de-Calais|Nord-Pas-de-Calais]]Picard

Nord-Pas-Calés

31LilleNord and Pas-de-Calais departments
Pays de la LoireFrench: [[:fr:Pays de la Loire|Pays de la Loire]]Breton: Broioù al Liger52NantesNone; created for Nantes
PicardyFrench: [[:fr:Picardie (ancienne région administrative)|Picardie]]22AmiensFormer province of Picardy
Poitou-CharentesFrench: [[:fr:Poitou-Charentes|Poitou-Charentes]]Occitan (post 1500);: Peitau-Charantas
Poitevin and Saintongeais : Poetou-Chérentes
54PoitiersFormer provinces of Angoumois, Aunis, Poitou and Saintonge
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA)French: [[:fr:Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur|Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur]] (PACA)Provençal

Occitan (post 1500);: Provença-Aups-Còsta d'Azur
(Occitan (post 1500);: Prouvènço-Aup-Costo d'Azur)

93MarseilleFormer historical province of Provence and County of Nice annexed by France in 1860.
Rhône-AlpesFrench: [[:fr:Rhône-Alpes|Rhône-Alpes]]Rôno-Arpes
Occitan (post 1500);: Ròse Aups
82LyonCreated for Lyon from Dauphiné and Lyonnais provinces and Savoy
Upper NormandyFrench: [[:fr:Haute-Normandie|Haute-Normandie]]Norman

Ĥâote-Normaundie
Breton: Normandi-Uhel

23RouenEastern half of former province of Normandy

Reform and mergers of regions

In 2014, the French parliament passed a law reducing the number of metropolitan regions from 22 to 13 effective 1 January 2016.[5]

The law gave interim names for most of the new regions by combining the names of the former regions, e.g. the region composed of Aquitaine, Poitou-Charentes and Limousin was temporarily called Aquitaine-Limousin-Poitou-Charentes. However, the combined region of Upper and Lower Normandy was simply called "Normandy" (Normandie). Permanent names were proposed by the new regional councils by 1 July 2016 and new names confirmed by the French: [[Conseil d'État (France)|Conseil d'État]] by 30 September 2016.[6] [7] The legislation defining the new regions also allowed the Centre region to officially change its name to "Centre-Val de Loire" with effect from January 2015.[8] Two regions, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, opted to retain their interim names.[9] [10]

Given below is a table of former regions and which new region they became part of.

Former region New region
Interim name Final name
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté
Brittany
Centre-Val de Loire
Corsica
French Guiana
Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine Grand Est
Champagne-Ardenne
Lorraine
Guadeloupe
Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie Hauts-de-France
Picardy
Île-de-France
Martinique
Mayotte
Normandy
Upper Normandy
Aquitaine-Limousin-Poitou-Charentes Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Limousin
Poitou-Charentes
Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées Occitanie
Midi-Pyrénées
Pays de la Loire
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Réunion

List of administrative regions

TypeRegionOther local name(s)ISOINSEE No.[11] CapitalArea (km2)Population[12] Seats in
Regional council
Former regions
(until 2016)
President of the Regional CouncilLocation
MetropolitanAuvergne-Rhône-Alpes
(Auvergne-Rhône-Alps)
Occitan (post 1500);: Auvèrnhe-Ròse-Aups
Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Arpes
FR-ARA84Lyon69,711204Auvergne
Rhône-Alpes
Laurent Wauquiez (LR)
MetropolitanBourgogne-Franche-Comté
(Burgundy-Free-County)
Borgogne-Franche-ComtâtFR-BFC27Dijon47,784100Burgundy
Franche-Comté
Marie-Guite Dufay (PS)
MetropolitanBretagne
(Brittany)
Breton: Breizh
Gallo

Bertaèyn

FR-BRE53Rennes27,20883unchangedLoïg Chesnais-Girard (PS)
MetropolitanCentre-Val de Loire
(Central-Vale of the Loire)
FR-CVL24Orléans39,15177unchangedFrançois Bonneau (PS)
MetropolitanCorse
(Corsica)
Corsican: CorsicaFR-20R94Ajaccio8,68063unchangedJean-Guy Talamoni (CL)
MetropolitanGrand Est
(Greater East)
German: Großer OstenFR-GES44Strasbourg57,441169Alsace
Champagne-Ardenne
Lorraine
Jean Rottner (LR)
MetropolitanHauts-de-France
(Heights-of-France)
FR-HDF32Lille31,806170Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Picardy
Xavier Bertrand (LR)
MetropolitanÎle-de-France
(Isle-of-France)
Breton: Enez-FrañsFR-IDF11Paris12,011209 unchangedValérie Pécresse (LR)
MetropolitanNormandie
(Normandy)
Norman

Normaundie
Breton: Normandi

FR-NOR28Rouen29,907102Upper Normandy
Lower Normandy
Hervé Morin (LC)
MetropolitanNouvelle-Aquitaine
(New Aquitaine)
Occitan (post 1500);: Nòva Aquitània / Nava Aquitània / Novela Aquitània
Basque: Akitania Berria
FR-NAQ75Bordeaux84,036183Aquitaine
Limousin
Poitou-Charentes
Alain Rousset (PS)
MetropolitanOccitanie(Occitania)Occitan (post 1500);: Occitània
Catalan; Valencian: Occitània
FR-OCC76Toulouse72,724158Languedoc-Roussillon
Midi-Pyrénées
Carole Delga (PS)
MetropolitanPays de la Loire
(Lands of the Loire)
Breton: Broioù al LigerFR-PDL52Nantes32,08293unchangedChristelle Morançais (LR)
MetropolitanProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
(Provence-Alps-Azure Coast)
Provençal

Provença-Aups-Còsta d'Azur
(Prouvènço-Aup-Costo d'Azur)

FR-PAC93Marseille31,400123unchangedRenaud Muselier (LR)
OverseasGuadeloupeAntillean Creole

Gwadloup

GP01Basse-Terre1,62841unchangedAry Chalus (GUSR)
OverseasGuyane
(French Guiana)
French Guianese Creole

Lagwiyann or Gwiyann

GF03Cayenne83,534[13] 51unchangedRodolphe Alexandre (PSG)
OverseasLa Réunion
(Réunion)
Reunion Creole

La Rényon

RE04Saint-Denis2,50445unchangedDidier Robert (LR)
OverseasMartiniqueAntillean Creole

Matinik

MQ02Fort-de-France1,12851unchangedClaude Lise (RDM)
OverseasMayotteShimaore

Maore
Malagasy: Mahori

YT06Mamoudzou37426unchangedSoibahadine Ibrahim Ramadani (LR)
632,73468,035,0001,910

Role

Regions lack separate legislative authority and therefore cannot write their own statutory law. They levy their own taxes and, in return, receive a decreasing part of their budget from the central government, which gives them a portion of the taxes it levies. They also have considerable budgets managed by a regional council (conseil régional) made up of representatives voted into office in regional elections.

A region's primary responsibility is to build and furnish high schools. In March 2004, the French central government unveiled a controversial plan to transfer regulation of certain categories of non-teaching school staff to the regional authorities. Critics of this plan contended that tax revenue was insufficient to pay for the resulting costs, and that such measures would increase regional inequalities.

In addition, regions have considerable discretionary power over infrastructural spending, e.g., education, public transit, universities and research, and assistance to business owners. This has meant that the heads of wealthy regions such as Île-de-France or Rhône-Alpes can be high-profile positions.

Proposals to give regions limited legislative autonomy have met with considerable resistance; others propose transferring certain powers from the departments to their respective regions, leaving the former with limited authority.

Regional control

Number of regions controlled by each coalition since 1986.

ElectionsPresidenciesMap
1986521
19924211
199810151
20042321
2010233
2015782
2021684

Overseas regions

Overseas region (French: Région d'outre-mer) is a recent designation, given to the overseas departments that have similar powers to those of the regions of metropolitan France. As integral parts of the French Republic, they are represented in the National Assembly, Senate and Economic and Social Council, elect a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) and use the euro as their currency.

Although these territories have had these political powers since 1982, when France's decentralisation policy dictated that they be given elected regional councils along with other regional powers, the designation overseas regions dates only to the 2003 constitutional change; indeed, the new wording of the constitution aims to give no precedence to either appellation overseas department or overseas region, although the second is still virtually unused by French media.

The following have overseas region status:

^ Saint Pierre and Miquelon (located just south of Newfoundland, Canada, in North America), once an overseas department, was demoted to a territorial collectivity in 1985.

See also

General:

Overseas

External links

Overseas regions

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Statistiques locales: France par région . . fr . 4 July 2022.
  2. Jean-Marie Miossec (2009), Géohistoire de la régionalisation en France, Paris: Presses universitaires de France .
  3. Web site: Code officiel géographique au 1er janvier 2014: Liste des régions. INSEE.
  4. New name as of 17 January 2015; formerly named French: Centre.
  5. http://www.lemonde.fr/politique/article/2014/12/17/la-carte-a-13-regions-definitivement-adoptee_4542278_823448.html La carte à 13 régions définitivement adoptée
  6. http://www.sudouest.fr/2014/12/04/quel-nom-pour-la-nouvelle-region-vous-avez-choisi-1755244-6058.php Quel nom pour la nouvelle région ? Vous avez choisi...
  7. Web site: Nouveau nom de la région : dernier jour de vote, Occitanie en tête. midilibre.fr.
  8. Web site: fr. Journal officiel of 17 January 2015. Légifrance. 2015-01-17. 2015-03-10.
  9. Web site: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes : fini la consultation, Laurent Wauquiez a tranché - Place Gre'net. 31 May 2016. placegrenet.fr.
  10. Web site: Région Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. www.bourgognefranchecomte.fr.
  11. Web site: La nouvelle nomenclature des codes régions. INSEE. fr. 17 January 2016.
  12. https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/6013844?sommaire=6011075 Populations légales des régions en vigueur au 1er janvier 2022
  13. Web site: Population by sex, annual rate of population increase, surface area and density . untstats.un.org . 5.