France

the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region.

The city of Paris, within its administrative, has a population of about 2,200,000.

containing his office, and is where the Council of Ministers

meets. It is located near the Champs-Élysées in the 8th arrondissement of Paris.

continental France is home 60876136 people. In terms of population

France is ranked 20th among 192 countries - members of the United Nations.

the most important economic and cultural center located in the

northern part of central France in the Ile-de-France on the banks of the river Seine. Besides Paris is of great international value - here the headquarters of UNESCO, the OECD and the International Chamber of Commerce.

852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of

240.62 km2. The urban area and metropolitan area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of around 1.6 million.

between Paris and Marseille. Etymologically it relates to the Celtic God Lugoves, Lugh as does Laon and Leiden.

Lyon is located approximately 470 km from Paris, 320 km from Marseille, 420 km from Strasbourg, 160 km from Geneva, 280 km from Turin. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais.
The population of Lyon is 479,803 (2009).

is the principal city of the Lille Metropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan

area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deule River, near France's border with Belgium. It is the capital of the Nord-Pas de Calais region and the prefecture of the Nord department.

France. With a length of 1,012 kilometres, it drains an area

of 117,054 km2 , which represents more than a fifth of France's land area. It is the 170th longest river in the world. It rises in the Cevennes in the departement  of Ardeche at 1,350 m near Mont Gerbier de Jonc, and flows for over 1,000 km north through Neversto Orleans, then west through Tours and Nantes until it reaches the Bay of Biscay at St. Nazaire . Its main tributaries include the Maine, Nievre  and the Erdre rivers on its right bank, and the Allier, Cher, Indre, Vienne, and the Sevre Nantaize  rivers from the left bank. The Loire gives its name to six départements: Loire, Haute-Loire, Loire-Atlantique,  Indre-et-Loire, Maine-et-Loire, and  Saône-et-Loire . The central part of the Loire Valley was added to the World Heritage Sites list of UNESCO on December 2, 2000. The banks are characterized by vineyards and chateaux in the Loire Valley.

the French National Day, which is celebrated on the 14th of July

each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale and commonly Le quatorze juillet. It commemorates the 1790 Fête de la Fédération, held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789; the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille fortress-prison was seen as a symbol of the uprising of the modern nation, and of the reconciliation of all the French inside the constitutional monarchy which preceded the First Republic, during the French Revolution.

It is known to English speakers as the French Tricolour or simply

the Tricolour.

the famous French aviator Roland Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two

weeks between late May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world and the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments – the other three are the Australian Open, US Open and Wimbledon. Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam held on clay and ends the spring clay court season.

places in France and holds a place of honour in town halls and law courts.

She symbolises the "Triumph of the Republic", a bronze sculpture overlooking the Place de la Nation in Paris. Her profile stands out on the official seal of the country, is engraved on French euro coins and appears on French postage stamps; it also was featured on the former franc currency. Marianne is one of the most prominent symbols of the French Republic.

France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic

Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It is composed of the 5 departments of Dordogne, Lot et Garonne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes and Gironde. In the Middle Ages Aquitaine was a kingdom and a duchy, whose boundaries fluctuated considerably.

the northwest of the country, lying between the English Channel to the

north and the Bay of Biscay to the south. Its capital is Rennes.

Germanic people originating in Bornholm who settled in the area during the

early Middle Ages. The Old Norse name for Bornholm was Burgundaholmr. An example of an equivalent name in present-day Scandinavia is Borgund in Norway. 27 regions of France.

1984 from two départements: Seine-Maritime and Eure, when Normandy was divided into Lower Normandy and Upper Normandy.

This division continues to provoke controversy, and many people continue to call for reuniting the two regions.