Original: Alsace ( , ; Alsatian : Elsàss , and , pre-1996 German : Elsaß ; ) is the fourth-smallest of the 26 regions of France in land area ( 8,280 km ² ) , and the smallest in metropolitan France .
Simplified: Alsace ( Alsatian and German : Elsass , pre-1996 German : Elsaß ) is one of the 26 régions of France .