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Aquitaine

Coordinates: 44°35′N 0°00′E / 44.583°N 0.000°E / 44.583; 0.000
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Aquitaine
Aquitània  (Occitan)
Region of France
Flag of Aquitaine
Flag
Coat of arms of Aquitaine
Coat of arms
Coordinates: 44°35′N 0°00′E / 44.583°N 0.000°E / 44.583; 0.000
Country France
Dissolved2016-01-01
PrefectureBordeaux
Departments
5
Government
 • PresidentAlain Rousset (PS)
Area
 • Total41,308 km2 (15,949 sq mi)
Population
 (2012)INSEE
 • Total3,285,970
 • Density80/km2 (210/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeFR-B
GDP (2012)[1]Ranked 6th
Total€90.8 billion (US$116.8 bn)
Per capita€27,583 (US$35,478)
NUTS RegionFR61
WebsiteRegion of Aquitaine

Aquitaine (Occitan: Aquitània; Basque: Akitania; Spanish: Aquitania) is a part of southwestern France. It was once an administrative region but is now part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. With over 41,000 square kilometers, it is one of the largest regions of mainland France (the largest of all French regions is French Guiana, in South America).

Its capital was Bordeaux, the largest city. The French name of the people living in the region is Aquitain.

The five departments in the region were Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, and Pyrénées-Atlantiques.

Geography

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The Aquitaine region was the third largest region of Metropolitan France, after Midi-Pyrénées and Rhône-Alpes. Its area was 41,284 km2 (15,940 sq mi).[2] It bordered with three French regions: Poitou-Charentes to the north, Limousin to the northeast and Midi-Pyrénées to the east. To the south is Spain (Aragon and Navarre) and to the west the Atlantic Ocean. The coast along the Atlantic Ocean, part of the Bay of Biscay, is called the Côte d'Argent (Silver Coast).

The Greenwich Meridian passes through Aquitaine.

Most of Aquitaine is in the Aquitanian basin,[N 1] a relatively flat and geologically young landscape. High mountains are found only in the south of Aquitaine, in the Pyrenees mountain range. The Pic Palas (42°50′58″N 0°18′48″E / 42.84944°N 0.31333°E / 42.84944; 0.31333 (Palas)), at 2,974 m (9,757 ft), is the highest point of Aquitaine; it is on the border with Spain.[3]

The main rivers of the region are the Garonne, that flows through the Gironde and Lot-et-Garonne departments;[4] the Dordogne, that flows through the Dordogne and Gironde departments;[5] the Lot, that flows through the Lot-et-Garonne department;[6] the Dropt, that flows through the Dordogne, Gironde and Lot-et-Garonne departments;[7] and the Adour, that flows through the Landes department.[8]

The climate is mild - except in the high mountains - all year round. On the Atlantic coast, the annual average temperature is above 15 °C, in Bordeaux is about 14 °C and on the border of Limousin is still 11 °C. Rainfall is relatively high and is higher in the south of the region.

History

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In the Middle Ages Aquitaine was at times a kingdom and a duchy. Various wars made it larger and smaller. Aquitane came into the control of England when Eleanor of Aquitaine married Henry II of England in 1152. It remained in English control until 1453 at the end of the Hundred Years' War.

Departments

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The Aquitaine region is formed by five departments:

Département Préfecture ISO
3166-2 		Population
(2012)[9] 		Area
(km²) 		Density
(Inh./km²)
Dordogne Périgueux FR-24 416,384   9,060 46.0
Gironde Bordeaux FR-33 1,483,712 9,975 148.7
Landes Mont-de-Marsan FR-40 392,884 9,243 42.5
Lot-et-Garonne Agen FR-47 332,119 5,361 62.0
Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pau FR-64 660,871 7,645 86.4

Demographics

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The Aquitaine region had a population, in 2012, of 3,285,970,[10] for a population density of 79.6 inhabitants/km2.

Place de la Bourse at night with the Miroir d'eau and tram, Bordeaux

The 10 most important cities in the department are:

City Population
(2012)[9] 		Départment
Bordeaux 241,287 Gironde
Pau 78,506 Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Mérignac 66,660 Gironde
Pessac 59,223 Gironde
Bayonne 45,855 Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Talence 41,358 Gironde
Anglet 39,223 Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Agen 33,730 Lot-et-Garonne
Mont-de-Marsan 31,018 Landes
Périgueux 29,906 Dordogne
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Notes

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  1. ↑ A basin, or sedimentary basin, is a low place in the Earth that gets filled with dirt and rocks.

References

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  1. ↑ INSEE. "Produits intérieurs bruts régionaux et valeurs ajoutées régionales de 1990 à 2012". Retrieved 2014-03-04.
  2. ↑ "Circonscriptions administratives au 1er janvier 2014". Publications et statistiques pour la France ou les régions (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  3. ↑ "Pic Palas, France/Spain". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  4. ↑ "La Garonne (O---0000)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "La Dordogne (P---0000)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Le Lot (O---0150)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  7. ↑ "Le Dropt (O9--0250)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 27 February 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "L'Adour (Q---0000)" (in French). SANDRE - Portail national d'accès aux référentiels sur l'eau. Archived from the original on 27 May 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Populations légales 2012 des départements et des collectivités d'outre-mer" (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  10. ↑ "Populations légales 2012 des régions" (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 27 February 2015.

Other websites

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aquitaine.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide about: Aquitaine
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