Champagne-Ardenne is a former administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Grand Est. Its capital was Chalons-en-Champagne. Another very important city in the region is Reims.
The departments in Champagne-Ardenne were Ardennes, Aube, Marne, and Haute-Marne.
The region is heavily centered on farming. It was the first region of France in the production of barley and alfalfa. Many cereals are also grown here. It is also very important for vegetables and wine. It is nearest to the east border. Sparkling wine is officially allowed to be called champagne if it is from here.
Upper Normandy
Upper Normandy (called "Haute-Normandie" in French) is a former region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Normandy. The capital was Rouen, which is now the capital of Normandy. In 2007 about 1.9 million people lived in the region.
Upper Normandy was formed as a region in 1956. The old region of Normandy was split into the current Upper Normandy and Lower Normandy. The departments in the region were Seine-Maritime and Eure.
The region was the first producer of flax in France. It is also quite industrialized, specialising in petrochemical and pharmaceutical, as well as manufacturing industries.
Limousin
Limousin is a former administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Its capital was Limoges. With 42 people per square kilometer, this was one of the least populated regions. About 710,000 people lived on roughly .
The departments in the region were Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienne.
The local economy had been recentered around services.
Languedoc-Roussillon
Languedoc-Roussillon (; ) is a former administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Occitanie. It is the southernmost region of mainland France and borders to the south with Spain and Andorra.
The five departments in the region were Aude, Gard, Hérault, Lozère, and Pyrénées-Orientales.
Its capital was Montpellier, the largest city. In French, the name of the inhabitants of the region is "Languedocien-Roussillonnais".
The name of the province of Languedoc originates from the language spoken in southern France, "langue d'oc," also known as "Occitan", and Roussillon, an area in the South of present-day Languedoc-Roussillon.
The Languedoc-Roussillon region has an area of . It bordered to the south with Spain and Andorra; to the east is the Mediterranean Sea (the "Gulf of Lion"). It also bordered four French regions: Midi-Pyrénées to the west, Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes to the north, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) to the northeast.
The highest point in Languedoc-Roussillon is Pic Carlit () in the Pyrénées-Orientales department; it is high.
The Languedoc-Roussillon region is formed by five departments:
The Languedoc-Roussillon region has a population, in 2012, of 2,700,266, for a population density of inhabitants/km.
The 10 most important cities in the region are:
Poitou-Charentes
Poitou-Charentes is a former administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It was in the west, bordering the Atlantic. Its capital was Poitiers. In 2007 about 1.7 million people lived in the region.
The departments in the region were Charente, Charente-Maritime, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne.
The region is well known for making wines. It is better known for its spirits, such as Cognac and Pineau. There is also some tourism and a little agriculture.
Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Nord-Pas-de-Calais (sometimes also Nord-Pas de Calais) used to be an administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Hauts-de-France. Its prefecture was Lille. In 2012, four million people lived there (365,000 in the urban area of Lille).
The two departments in the region were Nord and Pas-de-Calais.
The local economy was based on carbon, steel and textiles. The secondary sector (industry) employed 33.8% (of an 28.9% national average). Unemployment was at 12.9 per cent (9.8% national average). Structural investment in the TGV and the Channel Tunnel has shown some improvement though. The tourism industry does well thanks to the border with Belgium and closeness to England.
Picardy
Picardy () used to be an administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Hauts-de-France. It is in the north of the country. Amiens was its capital. In 2007 almost 1.9 million people lived in the region, 186,000 of them in the capital.
The departments in the region were Aisne, Oise, and Somme.
Agriculture is very important for Picardy. There are many products, including potatoes, cereals, and vegetables. Picardy was also called "Jardin de France", meaning 'Garden of France'.
Pays de la Loire
Pays de la Loire (or Pays-de-la-Loire) is an administrative region of France. Its capital is Nantes. In 2018, about 3.8 million people lived in the region. There are seven big centers, with more than 100.000 people in the respective urban area: Nantes, Angers, Le Mans, La Roche-sur-Yon, Cholet, Saint-Nazaire and Laval.
The departments in the region are:
The economy is centered around the production of food, and agriculture in general. It is the third in France in that sector. 51% of meat products, 19% of milk, and 67% of the natural produce of grain (cereals) are produced there.
Some people in the region also speak other local languages. These are
Breton is a Celtic language, the others are Romance languages.
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is a former administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. In 2010, about six million people lived in the region.
The capital was Lyon. Grenoble and Saint-Étienne are also important cities in the region.
The departments in the region were:
The Rhône-Alpes region hosted the Winter Olympics three times; in 1924 at Chamonix, 1968 at Grenoble, and 1992 at Albertville.
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur or PACA (, Italian: "Provenza-Alpi-Costa Azzurra") is one of the 18 administrative regions of France. Its capital is Marseille.
The Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region is the tenth largest region of France with an area of . It is in southeastern France and borders to the east with Monaco and Italy (with the Italian regions of Liguria and Piedmont). To the north is the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and to the west is the Occitanie region.
To the south, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has about of coast along the Mediterranean Sea.
The distances from Marseille, the capital of the region, to other cities are:
The only main drainage basin in the region is the Mediterranean basin; some of the rivers in region are:
The Barre des Écrins (), at , is the highest mountain of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It is in the Écrins National Park (), one of the ten French national parks.
The highest point of the different departments in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region are:
The Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region is formed by 6 departments:
"Arr." = Arrondissements          "Cant." = Cantons          "Comm." = Communes
The Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region had, in 2014, a population of 4,983,438, with a population density of inhabitants/km.
The main cities with more than 30,000 inhabitants (2014) in the region are:
Île-de-France
Île-de-France is a region of France. The capital city is Paris. It is also the capital city of France. In 2013 about 12 million people lived in the region. About 2.1 million people live in the city of Paris.
There are 8 departments in the region. They are:
Pont-l'évêque cheese
Pont-l'évêque is a soft cheese from Normandy. It is produced in the village with the same name. It has had an AOC since 1976, which means it can only be made in Pont-l'Évêque, Calvados. It is made from the milk of cows.
Livarot cheese
Livarot is a cheese from Normandy. It is produced in the village with the same name. It is a soft cheese made from the milk of cows.
Ajaccio