Decathlon

Dave Johnson, USA. In a second meaning, it refers to metropolitan France only. Bruce Jenner, USA. In a first meaning, "France" refers to the whole French Republic. Austra Skujyte 8366 pts Columbia, USA 15 April 2005 (awaiting verification). The name "France" (and its adjective "French") can have four different meanings which it is important to distinguish in order to avoid ambiguities. Roman Šebrle 9026 pts Götzis, AUT 27 May 2001. In a few languages (essentially Greek and Breton), France is known as "Gaul".

1500 m. In almost all the languages of the world, France is known by the word "France" or any of its derivatives. javelin throw. Nonetheless, contemporary Frenchmen could not help noticing the striking similarity between the two names, and it added to the aura surrounding de Gaulle. pole vault. William and Guillaume). discus throw. It seems that "Gaulle" comes from an old Germanic word meaning "wall", where w- evolved into g- under the influence of French (cf.

110m hurdles. Note that the family name of Charles de Gaulle (with two "l") has nothing to do with the name Gaul (French: Gaule, with one "l"). 400 m. The adjective Gallic is sometimes used to refer to French people, especially in a derisive and critical way, such as "Gallic pride" or "Gallic hygiene". High Jump. In English the word Gaul is never used in a modern context. shot put. The adjective gaulois is also used to describe a kind of humour located below the belt.

long jump. During the French Third Republic, the authorities often referred to notre vieille Nation gauloise ("our old Gallic Nation"), a case in which the adjective gaulois is used with a positive connotation. 100 m. The adjective gaulois (Gallic) is still sometimes used when a Frenchman wants to stress some idiosyncrasies of the French people entrenched in history, such as notre vieux fond gaulois querelleur ("the love of quarrels of our old Gallic stock"), a phrase used when denouncing French propensity for strikes or controversies. Gaul is in the plural in the title, reflecting the three Gallic entities identified by the Romans (Celtica, Belgica, and Aquitania). The only current use of the word is in the title of the leader of the French bishops, the archbishop of Lyon, whose official title is Primate of the Gauls (Primat des Gaules).

Today, in modern French, the word Gaule has completely disappeared, and is only used in a historical context. In fact, for as long as the cultural elites of Europe used Latin predominantly (until the 18th century), the name Gallia continued to be used alongside the name France. This name continued to be used for a very long time after the Franks arrived in what is now France. Before the arrival of the Franks, France was called Gaul (Latin: Gallia; French: Gaule).

These new coins were called francs, because they were minted to "free" the king. In order to raise the money to pay the ransom, a new coinage had to be minted. The English asked for a ransom to liberate the king, which amounted to twice the yearly income of France. During the Hundred Years' War, King John II of France was captured by the English at the Battle of Poitiers (1356).

"freemason"). "free port") or franc-maçon (i.e. The meaning "free" was lost, except in a few set phrases, such as port franc (i.e. In modern French, franc means "frank, sincere".

Instead, the name of the currency comes from Old French franc, a word which meant "free", directly borrowed from the Germanic word frank ("free"). Contrary to what many people believe, the name of the former French currency, the franc, does not come from the name of the country. However, rather than the ethnic name of the Franks coming from the word frank ("free"), it is more probable that the word frank ("free") comes from the ethnic name of the Franks, the connection being that only the Franks, as the conquering class, had the status of freemen. Another proposed etymology is that Frank means "the free men", based on the fact that the word frank meant "free" in the ancient Germanic languages.

The name of the Franks itself is said to come from the Proto-Germanic word *frankon which means "javelin, lance". In order to distinguish from the Frankish Empire of Charlemagne, France is called Frankreich, while the Frankish Empire is called Frankenreich. Noticeably, in German, France is still called Frankreich, which literally means "Reich (realm) of the Franks". The French state has been in continuous existence since 843 (except for a brief interruption in 885-887), with an unbroken line of heads of states since the first king of Francia Occidentalis (Charles the Bald) to the current president of the French Republic (Jacques Chirac).

Since the name Francia Orientalis had disappeared, there arose the habit to refer to Francia Occidentalis as Francia only, from which the word France is derived. The Battle of Bouvines in 1214 definitely marked the end of the efforts by the Holy Roman Empire to reunify the old Frankish Empire by conquering France. The kings of Francia Occidentalis successfully opposed this claim, and managed to preserve Francia Occidentalis as an independent kingdom, distinct from the Holy Roman Empire. The rulers of Francia Orientalis, who soon claimed the imperial title and wanted to reunify the Frankish Empire, dropped the name Francia Orientalis and called their realm the Holy Roman Empire (see History of Germany).

"Eastern Frankland"). "Western Frankland") and Francia Orientalis (i.e. At the Treaty of Verdun in 843, the Frankish Empire was divided in three parts, and eventually only two: Francia Occidentalis (i.e. Originally it applied to the whole Frankish Empire, extending from southern France to eastern Germany.

The name France comes from Medieval Latin Francia, which literally means "land of the Franks, Frankland". A Gallup poll established that 15% of the French population attend places of worship. When questioned about their religion, 62% answered Roman Catholic, 6% Muslim, 2% Protestant, 1% Jewish, 2% "other religions" (except for Orthodox or Buddhist, which were negligible), 26% "no religion" and 1% declined to answer. 33% declared that "atheist" described them rather or very well, and 51% said they were "Christian".

However, in a 2003 poll 41% said that the existence of God was "excluded" or "unlikely". Statistics from an unspecified source and date given in the CIA World Factbook gives the following number: Roman Catholic 83 to 88%, Muslim 5 to 10%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%. The government does not maintain statistics as to the religion of its inhabitants. Tensions occasionally erupt about alleged or real discrimination against minorities; see Islam in France.

The dominant concept of the relationships between the public sphere and religions is that of laïcité, which implies that the government and government institutions (such as schools) should not endorse any particular religion or intervene in religious dogma, and that religions should refrain from intervening in policy-making. Freedom of religion is constitutionally a right, inspired by the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. Traditionally a predominantly Roman Catholic country, yet also with anticlerical leanings, France has since the 1970s been a very secular country. She also features on everyday articles such as postage stamps and coins.

Recent ones are Sophie Marceau, and Laetitia Casta. In recent times, famous French actresses are given the title of Marianne. She was represented in several different manners, depending on whether the aim was to emphasize her revolutionary nature or her "wisdom." Over time, the Phrygian cap was felt to be too seditious, and was replaced by a diadem or a crown. Under the Third Republic, statues, and especially busts, of Marianne began to proliferate, particularly in town halls.

Mediterranean seamen and convicts manning the galleys also wore a similar type of cap. It is believed that revolutionaries from the South of France adopted the Phrygian cap as it symbolised liberty, having been worn by freed slaves in both Greece and Rome. Anti-revolutionaries of the time derisively called her La République. The origins of the name Marianne are unknown, but Marie-Anne was a very common first name in the 18th century.

The earliest representations of Marianne are of a woman wearing a Phrygian cap. She is an allegorical figure of liberty and the Republic and first appeared at the time of the French Revolution. Marianne is a symbol of the French Republic. The principal cities by population include:.

If we add up people with mother tongue and people with some exposure to the language before the age of 5, then the five most important languages in metropolitan France are (note that the percentages add up to more than 100, because many people are now counted twice):. It is important to read the notes at the Languages of France article in order to correctly interpret the numbers. Here is a list of the nine most prominent mother tongues in France based on Enquête familiale. The results were published in Enquête familiale, Insee, 1999.

This is the first time serious statistics were computed about the proportion of mother tongues in France. One of the questions was about the languages that their parents spoke with them before the age of 5. At the 1999 census, INSEE sampled 380,000 adult people all across Metropolitan France, and asked them questions about their family situation. Some languages spoken by immigrants are also frequently spoken, especially in large cities: Portuguese, Maghreb Arabic, several Berber languages, several languages of Sub-Saharan Africa, Turkish, several spoken variants of Chinese (most notably Wu, Cantonese, Min Nan, and Mandarin), Vietnamese, and Khmer are the most frequently spoken.

They are now taught at some schools, though French remains the only official language in use by the government, local or national. These historical regional languages have been known as patois, though this has been considered depreciative. However, several regional languages (including Alsatian, Basque, Breton, Caribbean Creole, Catalan, Corsican, Flemish, Franco-Provençal dialects, Gascon, Lorraine German dialect, Norman, Occitan, and some Oïl dialects - e.g., Picard) are also occasionally understood and spoken, mostly by elderly people, but the French government and state school system discouraged the use of any of them until recently. The sole official language of France is French.

In the most extreme case, the population of Creuse fell by 24%. Over the period 1960-1999 fifteen rural départements experienced a decline in population. A perennial political issue concerns rural depopulation. France thereby replaced the United States as the world's top destination for asylum-seekers in 2004.

According to the UNHCR, the number of people seeking political asylum in France rose by around 3 % between 2003 and 2004, while in the same period, the number of asylum applications submitted in the United States fell by about 29 %. By 2050 it is estimated that the population of the European Union (of the current 25 members) will have declined to 445 million inhabitants, of whom 17.5% will be living in France. In mid-2004 the EU had 460 million inhabitants, 13.6% of whom were living in France (including overseas départements). It would be the first time since the 1860s that France is the largest Nation of Europe (Russia excluded).

If these estimates become reality, it may fundamentally alter the balance of power in Brussels. Demographers now estimate that by 2050 metropolitan France's population will be 75 million, at which time it will be the most populated country of the European Union, above Germany (71 million), the United Kingdom (59 million), and Italy (43 million). By 2050, demographers initially thought the population of metropolitan France would be 64 million inhabitants, but they now agree that their estimates were too conservative, being based on the 1990s growth rate of population. At the moment, France is the third most populous country of Europe, behind Russia and Germany.

These unexpected results bear great consequences for the future. In 2004 the natural increase in France's population reached 256,000, but figures for other European countries are not available yet. In 2003, France's natural population growth (excluding immigration) was responsible for almost all the natural growth in European population: the population of the European Union increased by 216,000 inhabitants (without immigration), of which 211,000 was the increase in France's population alone, and 5,000 was the increase in all the other countries of the EU combined. France is now well ahead of all other European countries (except for the Republic of Ireland).

2004 was the year with the highest increase in French population since 1974. In 2004, population growth was 0.68%, almost reaching North American levels. Between 1999-2003, annual population growth was 0.58%. The census revealed that population growth rebounded significantly after the 1999 census, something nobody had anticipated.

However, first results from the 2004 French census have greatly surprised demographers. After 1974, France's population growth stalled, and reached its nadir in the 1990s with only 0.39% annual growth, being now more in tune with the rest of Europe, which has entered demographic decline. On the other hand, it experienced a much stronger growth in the second half of the 20th century than the rest of Europe or indeed its own growth in the previous centuries. Unlike the rest of Europe, France did not experience a strong population growth in the 19th century and first half of the 20th century.

Starting with the 19th century, the historical evolution of the population in France has been extremely atypical in the Western World. Nevertheless, the immigrants from other European countries have an easier time blending in, while the 'non-European' groups tend to assimilate at a slower pace, because of greater cultural barriers and social discrimination which is, according to left-wing thought, tied to economic exploitation. It is currently estimated that about 40% of the French population descends in varying amounts from these different waves of migrations, making France the most ethnically diverse country of Europe, despite the still popular stereotypes of France as an essentially Gallic country. Besides these "historic" populations, new populations have migrated to France since the 19th century: Belgians, Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, Poles, Armenians, Jews from Eastern Europe and the Maghreb, Arabs and Berbers from the Maghreb, Black Africans, and Chinese, to list only the most prominent.

Four basic European ethnic stocks - Celtic (Gallic and Breton), Aquitanian (Basque related), Latin, and Germanic (Franks, Visigoths, Burgundians, Vikings) - have blended over the centuries to make up its present population. Since prehistoric times, France has been a crossroads of trade, migrations, and invasions.
. Today the two countries form what is often referred to as the "core" countries in favour of greater integration of the European Union.

Since the end of the Second World War the government made efforts to integrate more and more with Germany, both economically and politically. Large tracts of fertile land, the application of modern technology, and EU subsidies have combined to make France the leading agricultural producer in Europe. France is also the most energy independent Western country due to heavy investment in nuclear power, which also makes France the smallest producer of carbon dioxide among the seven most industrialised countries in the world. France has an important aerospace industry led by the European consortium Airbus and is the only European power to have its own national spaceport (Centre Spatial Guyanais).

It features cities of high cultural interest (Paris being the foremost), beaches and seaside resorts, ski resorts, and rural regions that many enjoy for their beauty and tranquillity (green tourism). With over 75 million foreign tourists in 2003, France is ranked as the first tourist destination in the world, ahead of Spain (52.5 million) and the United States (40.4 million). Liberal and Keynesian economists have different answers to that issue. In their opinion, it is an issue of structural reforms, in order to increase the size of the working population in the overall population.

As many economists have stressed repeatedly over the years, the main issue with the French economy is not an issue of productivity. This phenomenon is the result of almost thirty years of massive unemployment in France, which has led to three consequences reducing the size of the working population: about 10% of the active population is without a job; students delay as long as possible their entry into labour market; and finally the French government gives various incentives to workers to retire in their early 50s, though these are now receding. In 2003, 41.5% of the French population was working, compared to 50.7% in the US, and 47.3% in the UK. In fact, France has one of the lowest percentage of its population at work among the OECD countries.

The reason for this is because a much smaller percentage of the French population is working compared to the US, which sinks the GDP per capita of France, despite its higher productivity. Despite a higher productivity per hour worked than in the US, France's GDP per capita is significantly lower than the US GDP per capita, being in fact comparable to the GDP per capita of the other European countries, which is on average 30% below US level. [6]. [5] In 2004, the GDP per hour worked in France was 47.7 USD, ranking France above the United States (46.3 USD per hour worked), Germany (42.1 USD per hour worked), the United Kingdom (39.6 USD per hour worked), or Japan (32.5 USD per hour worked).

In the 2005 edition of OECD in Figures, the OECD also noted that France leads the G7 countries in terms of productivity (measured as GDP per hour worked). At the same time, French companies invested 57.3 billion USD outside of France, ranking France as the second most important outward direct investor in the OECD, behind the United States (173.8 billion USD of outward FDI), but ahead of the United Kingdom (55.3 billion USD of outward FDI), Japan (28.8 billion USD of outward FDI), or Germany (2.6 billion USD of outward FDI). With 47 billion USD of foreign direct investments, France ranked above the United States (39.9 billion USD of FDI received), the United Kingdom (14.6 billion USD of FDI received), Germany (12.9 billion USD of FDI received), or Japan (6.3 billion USD of FDI received). Yet according to the OECD, in 2003 France was the OECD country that received the most foreign direct investment (Luxembourg excepted, where foreign direct investment was mostly monetary transfers to banks located in that country).

It was also the fourth-largest importer of manufactured goods (behind the United States, Germany, and China, but ahead of the United Kingdom and Japan). According to the OECD, in 2004 France was the world's fifth-largest exporter of manufactured goods, behind the United States, Germany, Japan, and China, (but ahead of the United Kingdom). France joined 10 other EU members to launch the Euro on January 1, 1999, with euro coins and banknotes completely replacing the French franc in early 2002. A member of the G8 group of leading industrialised countries, it ranked as the fifth-largest economy in the world in 2004, behind the United States, Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

The government is slowly selling off holdings in France Télécom, Air France, as well as the insurance, banking, and defence industries. It has been gradually relaxing its control over these sectors since the early 1990s. The government retains considerable influence over key segments of infrastructure sectors, with majority ownership of railway, electricity, aircraft, and telecommunication firms. France's economy combines extensive private enterprise (nearly 2.5 million companies registered) with substantial (though declining) government intervention (see dirigisme).

See Islands controlled by France in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. France also maintains control over a number of small uninhabited islands in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean: Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, Tromelin Island. The departmental and overseas collectivities have an intermediate status between overseas départements and overseas territories. In contrast, the overseas "départements" used the French franc and now use the euro.

The Pacific territories continue to use the Pacific Franc whose value is linked to that of the Euro. Overseas territories and countries form part of the French Republic, but do not form part of the EU or its fiscal area. The French Republic is further made up of a number of overseas territories, overseas countries, departmental collectivities and overseas collectivities. Four of the départements are overseas départements which are an integral part of France (and the EU) and thus enjoy a status similar to metropolitan départments.

Historically, the cantons were also territorial collectivities with elected assemblies. Until 1940, the arrondissements were also territorial collectivities with elected assemblies (arrondissement council), but these were suspended by the Vichy regime and abolished by the Fourth Republic in 1946. The régions, départements, and communes are known as territorial collectivities (collectivités territoriales), and possess local assemblies and executives. The departments are subdivided into 342 arrondissements and 4,035 cantons which serve only administrative and electoral purposes, and 36,682 communes as the lowest tier.

The departments are numbered (mainly alphabetically) and this number is used in postal codes and vehicle number plates. The régions are subdivided into 100 départements. France has 26 administrative régions: 21 metropolitan régions, the territorial collectivity of Corse (Corsica) (commonly referred to as a région), and four overseas régions.
.

About 10% of France's defence budget goes toward its force de frappe, or nuclear weapons.
. In most other EU countries, defence spending is less than 1.5% of GDP. Those two countries account for 40% of EU defence spending. Among the larger European economies, France and the United Kingdom are the only significant spenders on defence: France with 2.6% of GDP, and the UK at 2.4%, according to 2003 figures from NATO.

The French armed forces are divided into four branches:. France hosts the headquarters of the OECD, UNESCO, Interpol, and the International Bureau for Weights and Measures in charge of the international metric system. France is also a member of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), the Indian Ocean Commission (COI), an associate member of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) and a leading member of the International Francophone Organisation (OIF) of fifty-one fully or partly French-speaking countries. The outcome of the vote was widely regarded as crucial for the future development of the EU, as well as for France's ability to retain leadership in Europe.

On May 29, 2005 the French electorate voted in the referendum with about 55% against ratification of the proposed Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. French foreign policy has been largely shaped by membership of the European Union. Lately its share of the votes has remained stable at approximately 16%. The right-wing Front National party made significant inroads in the early 1980's, seized on voter concern about the perceived decline of France and 'national dissolution' as a result of immigration and globalisation, by advocating tougher law-and-order and immigration policies.

For the past thirty years, French politics has been characterised by the two politically opposed groupings: one left-wing, centred around the French Socialist Party, and the other right-wing, centred around the Rassemblement pour la République (RPR) and its successor the Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (UMP). The government has a strong influence in shaping the agenda of Parliament. Senators are chosen by electoral college for 6-year terms (originally 9-year terms), and one half of the seats are submited to election every 3 years starting in September 2008.^[4] The Senate's legislative powers are limited; in the event of disagreement between the two chambers, the National assembly has the final say, except for constitutional laws (amendments to the constitution & "lois organiques"). The Assembly has the power to dismiss the cabinet, and thus the majority in the Assembly determines the choice of government.

The National Assembly deputies represent local constituencies and are directly elected for 5-year terms. The French parliament is a bicameral legislature comprising a National Assembly (Assemblée Nationale) and a Senate. The president names the prime minister, presides over the cabinet, commands the armed forces, and concludes treaties. Presidential arbitration assures regular functioning of the public powers and the continuity of the state.

Under the constitution, the President of the French Republic is elected directly by universal adult suffrage for a 5-year (originally 7-year) term. It greatly strengthened the authority of the executive in relation to Parliament. The constitution of the Fifth Republic was approved by referendum on September 28, 1958. However the French electorate voted against ratification of the European Constitutional Treaty in May 2005.

France has been at the forefront of European states seeking to exploit the momentum of monetary union to create a more unified and capable European political, defence and security apparatus. In recent decades, France's reconciliation and cooperation with Germany have proved central to the political and economic integration of Europe, including the introduction of the Euro in January 1999. The Fourth Republic was established after World War II, to be replaced in 1958 by the current semi-presidential Fifth Republic established under General Charles de Gaulle. France's ultimate victory in World War I and World War II after initially being invaded and partly occupied by German forces did not prevent the loss of the empire, the comparative economic status, population and status as a dominant nation state.

Louis-Napoléon was unseated following the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 to be replaced by the Third Republic. The short-lived Second Republic ended in 1852 when Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaimed the Second French Empire. In 1830, a civil uprising established the constitutional July Monarchy followed by the Second Republic in 1848. Following Napoleon's defeat in 1815, the French monarchy was re-established.

In the course of several wars, his armies conquered many countries, with members of the Bonaparte family being appointed as monarchs of newly established kingdoms. Napoleon Bonaparte seized control of the Republic in 1799, making himself First Consul, and later Emperor of what is now known as the First French Empire (1804-1814). The monarchy ruled France until 1792, when the French Revolution established the First Republic. At this time France had a tremendous influence over the European politics, economy and culture as well as possessing the largest population in Europe (see Demographics of France).

The monarchy reached its height during the 17th century and the reign of Louis XIV. His descendants, the Capetian, Valois and Bourbon dynasties progressively unified the country through a series of wars and dynastic inheritance. Charlemagne's descendants ruled France until 987, when Hugh Capet, Duke of France and Count of Paris, was crowned King of France. The western part approximated to much of modern France.

Existence as a separate entity began in 843, with the division of Charlemagne's Carolingian empire into eastern, central and western parts. The modern name "France" derives from the name of the feudal domain of the Capetian Kings of France around Paris. In the fourth century CE, Gaul's eastern frontier along the Rhine was overrun by Germanic tribes, principally the Franks, from whom the ancient name of "Francie" was derived. Christianity also took root in the second and third centuries CE.

Gaul was conquered by the Romans in the first century BCE, and the Gauls eventually adopted Roman speech and culture. The borders of modern France are roughly the same as those of ancient Gaul, which was inhabited by Celtic Gauls. Due to its overseas departments and territories scattered on all oceans of the planet, France possesses the second-largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the world, covering 11,035,000 km² (4,260,000 mi²), just behind the EEZ of the United States (11,351,000 km² / 4,383,000 mi²), but ahead of the EEZ of Australia (8,232,000 km² / 3,178,000 mi²).^[3] The EEZ of France covers approximately 8% of the total surface of all the EEZs of the world, whereas the land area of the French Republic is only 0.45% of the total land area on Earth. France also has extensive river systems such as the Loire, the Rhône, the Garonne and the Seine.

There are several other elevated regions such as the Massif Central, the Jura, the Vosges, and the Ardennes which are quite rocky and forested. The French Alps contain the highest point in western Europe, Mont Blanc at 4810 m. Metropolitan France possesses a wide variety of landscapes, from coastal plains in the north and west to mountain ranges in the south-east (the Alps) and the south-west (the Pyrenees). These territories have varying forms of government ranging from overseas département to "overseas country".

While the main territory of France (metropolitan France; French: la Métropole, or France métropolitaine) is located in Western Europe, France is also constituted from a number of territories in North America, the Caribbean, South America, the southern Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and Antarctica (sovereignty claims in Antarctica are governed by the Antarctic Treaty System). . More precisely, the region around Paris, called Île-de-France, was the original French royal demesne. The name France originates from the Franks, a Germanic tribe that occupied the region after the fall of the Roman Empire.

It is one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council wielding veto power, and it is also one of only eight acknowledged nuclear powers. France is also a founding member of the United Nations. France is one of the founding members of the European Union, and has the largest land area of all members. It is a highly developed country with the fifth-largest economy in the world in 2004.^[2] Its main ideals are expressed in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.

The French Republic is a democracy organised as a unitary semi-presidential republic. France is also linked to the United Kingdom via the Channel Tunnel, which passes underneath the English Channel. In some of its overseas parts, France also shares land borders with Brazil, Suriname, and the Netherlands Antilles. France is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Andorra, and Spain.

French people often refer to Metropolitan France as l'Hexagone (the "Hexagon") because of its geographical shape. ^[1] Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and North Sea, and from the Rhine River to the Atlantic Ocean. France (pronounced /fʀɑ̃s/ in French), officially the French Republic (French: République française, pronounced /ʀepyblik fʀɑ̃sɛz/), is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in Western Europe, and which is further made up of a collection of overseas islands and territories located in other continents. France also uses .eu, shared with other members of the European Union..

or 247 acres) as well as the estuaries of rivers
⁶ Whole of the French Republic except the overseas territories in the Pacific Ocean
⁷ French overseas territories in the Pacific Ocean only
⁸ In addition to .fr, several other Internet TLDs are used in French overseas départements and territories: .re, .mq, .gp, .tf, .nc, .pf, .wf, .pm, and .yt. mi. European) France only
⁴ French National Geographic Institute data
⁵ French Land Register data, which exclude lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km² (0.386 sq. ¹ See Languages section for regional languages
² Whole territory of the French Republic, including all the overseas departments and territories, but excluding the French territory of Terre Adélie in Antarctica where sovereignty is suspended since the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959
³ Metropolitan (i.e.