Departments of FranceIn the administrative divisions of France, the department (French: département, pronounced) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 departments, consisting of ninety-six departments in metropolitan France, and five overseas departments, which are also classified as overseas regions.
BriançonBriançon (French:, Occitan:) is the sole subprefecture of the Hautes-Alpesdepartment in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azurregion in Southeastern France. It is the highest city in France at an altitude of 1,326 metres (4,350 feet), based on the national definition as a community containing more than 2,000 inhabitants. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. Briançon has been part of the Fortifications of VaubanUNESCOWorld Heritage Sites since they were established in 2008.
Prefectures in FranceIn France, a prefecture (French: préfecture, pronounced [pʁefɛktyʁ] ) may be: the chef-lieu de département, the commune in which the administration of a department is located; the chef-lieu de région, the commune in which the administration of a region is located; the jurisdiction of a prefecture; the official residence or headquarters of a prefect.
Subprefectures in FranceIn France, a subprefecture (French: sous-préfecture, pronounced [su pʁefɛktyʁ]) is the commune that hosts the administrative centre of an arrondissement, the primary division of a department, except for the commune that serves that function for the whole department, known as the prefecture. The proper legal name is arrondissement chief place (French: chef-lieu d'arrondissement).
Gap, Hautes-AlpesGap (French pronunciation: [ɡap], Occitan: [ˈɡap]) is the prefecture of the department of Hautes-Alpes, in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, southern France. With a population of about 41,000, it is the most populated city in Hautes-Alpes. At a height of 750 metres above sea level, to the south of the Écrins Massif, it is also France's highest prefecture.
IsèreIsère (US: ee-ZAIR; French: [izɛʁ] ; Arpitan: Isera; Occitan: Isèra, Occitan pronunciation: [iˈsɛɾa]) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,298,990 in 2023. Its prefecture is Grenoble. It borders Rhône to the northwest, Ain to the north, Savoie to the east, Hautes-Alpes to the south, Drôme and Ardèche to the southwest and Loire to the west.
Regions of FranceFrance is divided into eighteen administrative regions (French: régions administratives, singular région administrative or just région, ). Twelve of which are located in the Hexagon (in Europe), another one is Corsica, while the other five are overseas regions (not to be confused with the overseas collectivities, which have a semi-autonomous status).
FranceCountry primarily in Western EuropeFrance, officially the French Republic, is a country primarily located in Western Europe. Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean.
French AlpsThe French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such as the Mont Blanc massif, are shared with Switzerland and Italy. At 4,808 metres (15,774 ft), Mont Blanc, on the France–Italy border, is the highest mountain in the Alps, and the highest Western European mountain.
Occitan languageRomance language of Western EuropeGeographic range of the Occitan language around 1900Occitan (English: ; Occitan pronunciation:), also known by its native speakers as lenga d'òc (Occitan:; French: langue d'oc), sometimes also referred to as Provençal, is a Romance language spoken in southern France, Monaco, Italy's Occitan Valleys and the Val d'Aran in northeast Spain; collectively, these regions are sometimes referred to as Occitania.
Institut national de la statistique et des études économiquesThe National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (French: Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, pronounced), abbreviated INSEE or Insee ( , French:), is the national statistics bureau of France. It collects and publishes information about the French economy and people and carries out the periodic national census. Headquartered in Montrouge, a commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, it is the French branch of Eurostat.
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'AzurProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (commonly shortened to PACA), sometimes known as Région Sud, is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, located at the far southeastern point of the mainland. The main prefecture and largest city is Marseille, France's second largest city proper after Paris and the 2nd largest urban area when combined with Aix-en-Provence with over 1.9 million residents.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.