The Morvan (historically Morvand from the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
''Murvinnum'' 590)
[Pierre-Henri Billy, ''Dictionnaire des noms de lieux de la France'', éditions Errance, 640 pages, 2011 , ] is a mountainous
massif lying just to the west of the
Côte d'Or
Côte is a British cafe chain founded by Richard Caring, Andy Bassadone, Chris Benians and Nick Fiddler in Wimbledon, London
Wimbledon () is a district and town of Southwest London, England, southwest of the centre of London at Charing Cros ...
escarpment in the
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
, central-east
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. It is a northerly extension of the
Massif Central and is of
Variscan age. It is composed of
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies un ...
s and
basalts and formed a
promontory extending northwards into the
Jurassic
The Jurassic ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of ...
sea.
It is the smallest mountain area in France in terms of landmass covered, as well as the lowest, with a maximum altitude of 901 metres (2,956 feet) at
Haut-Folin
Haut-Folin in the Saône-et-Loire department is at 901 m the highest point in the region of Burgundy in France. It is the summit of the Morvan
The Morvan (historically Morvand from the Latin ''Murvinnum'' 590)Pierre-Henri Billy, ''Dictionna ...
.
Geography
The Morvan is located across the
Côte-d'Or,
Nièvre,
Saône-et-Loire and
Yonne departments
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in the
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
in central-east France.
At its heart nowadays is the
protected area of
Morvan Regional Natural Park (French: ''Parc naturel régional du Morvan'').
Its main town is
Château-Chinon, Nièvre on the D978 road between
Nevers
Nevers ( , ; la, Noviodunum, later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is the prefecture of the Nièvre Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in central France. It was the principal city of the ...
and
Autun. Several of its valleys have been
dammed to form
reservoirs.
Cantons du massif du Morvan (France).svg, Map of the cantons of the Morvan
Carte des Communes du Parc Naturel Régional du Morvan en 2008.svg, Map of the communes of the Morvan Regional Natural Park
Carte géologique du Morvan.svg, Geological map of the Morvan
Landscape, Morvan, France (2).JPG, Typical landscape in the Morvan
Music
The Morvan has a strong musical tradition. It uses musical ideas from many other cultures and combines them to make its own.
See also
*
Château-Chinon (Campagne)
Château-Chinon (Campagne), or Château-Chinon-Campagne (), is a commune in the Nièvre department in central France.
This commune groups several villages (Précy, Les Mouilleferts, Planchotte, Le Pont-Charrot, Montbois) all around Château-Ch ...
*
Château-Chinon (Ville)
Château-Chinon (Ville) () is a commune in the Nièvre department in France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.
The villages around the town are grouped in another commune named Château-Chinon (Campagne).
François Mitterrand (1916– ...
References
External links
Internationally, Morvan is relatively unknown, so most information is in French.
Lormes.net, a place in the Morvanand pollution sources
Le Morvan
{{coord, 47, 05, N, 4, 00, E, region:FR_type:mountain, display=title
Mountain ranges of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté