The Pointe du Raz is a promontory that extends into the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
from western
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
, in
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 ...
. The local
Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
name is ''Beg ar Raz''. It is the western point of the ''commune'' of
Plogoff
Plogoff (; br, Plougoñ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France.
It contains three small ports suitable for small vessels: Pors-Loubous, Feunten-Aod and Bestrée. Local industries include tourism, traditi ...
,
Finistère
Finistère (, ; br, Penn-ar-Bed ) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090. .
It is named after the ''
Raz de Sein Raz may refer to:
Places France
*Pointe du Raz, the western point of the ''commune'' of Plogoff, Finistère, France
* Alderney Race (''Raz Blanchard''), a strong tidal current between La Hague and Alderney
* Raz de Sein, a stretch of water located ...
'', the dangerous stretch of water between it and the island of
Sein (''Enez Sun'' in Breton). It is a dramatic place of crashing waves and strong winds. The word ''raz'' was borrowed from
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
by the Bretons and shares the same etymology as the English word race, "strong current of water"; both are from Old Norse ''rás''.
It also marks the western end of the 3,200 km
E5 European long distance path
The E5 European long distance path or E5 path is one of the European long-distance paths from the French Atlantic coast in Brittany through Switzerland, Austria and Germany over the Alps to Venice in Italy. It is waymarked over the whole 3200 km ...
to Venice in Italy.
The "
La Vieille
La Vieille ("The Old Lady" or "The Wrass") is a lighthouse in the ''département'' of Finistère at the ''commune'' of Plogoff, on the northwest coast of France. It lies on the rock known as ''Gorlebella'' ( Breton for "farthest rock"), guiding ma ...
" lighthouse can be clearly seen from the headland.
Although it is not quite the westernmost extent of France—that would be
Pointe de Corsen
The Pointe de Corsen is the westernmost point of continental France, located west of Brest in the Plouarzel Commune, Finistère, Brittany. The nearest village is Ruscumunoc.
A CROSS sea monitoring site is located at the point.
Pointe de Corsen ...
, just to the north—its rocky isolation makes it a popular tourist destination, comparable in some ways to
Land's End
Land's End ( kw, Penn an Wlas or ''Pedn an Wlas'') is a headland and tourist and holiday complex in western Cornwall, England, on the Penwith peninsula about west-south-west of Penzance at the western end of the A30 road. To the east of it is ...
in the southern UK.
A brief description of Pointe du Raz is part of the culminating farewell conversation between the hero and heroine of Daphne du Maurier's novel "Frenchman's Creek," symbolizing the passionate turmoil (like the winds and waves of Pointe du Raz, in the channel between France and Britain) that characterizes the relationship between the French pirate hero and the aristocratic British heroine.
External links
Shortfilm "L'Hôtel" about the Hôtel de l'Iroise (1947-1997), placed on the Pointe du RazPhotos of the Pointe du Raz*
Penn Ar Bed - Photothèque & Lighthouse
Headlands of Brittany
Landforms of Finistère
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