Departments of France

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Updates: 

ISO 3166-2 Newsletter Number I-9 was published on 2007-11-28. It adds Clipperton Island (ISO code FR-CP) to France as a dependency (dépendance), and Saint Barthélemy (FR-BL) and Saint Martin (FR-MF) as overseas territorial collectivities (collectivités territoriales d'outre-mer), to correspond to the changes in status that took place this year. The codes for Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin are redundant, because they also have separate country codes. The newsletter also changes the status of French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna from overseas territories to overseas territorial collectivities, probably reflecting changes that took place in 2004.

Clipperton Island has been placed directly under the administration of the French Overseas Ministry. Technically, it is now a public domain of the French state (domaine public de l'État français, propriété domaniale de l’Etat). As such, it is part of France, but not part of any other subdivision of France. Since it has no permanent inhabitants, I have exercised my editorial prerogatives by listing it under French Polynesia, where it belongs geographically and historically.

The NUTS code scheme was revised in 2003. The digit '0' was appended to the codes for Île-de-France and Nord-Pas-de-Calais regions to make all the region codes the same length.

ISO 3166-2 Newsletter Number I-2 was published on 2002-05-21. It corrects an error in the original standard document which placed the department of Deux-Sèvres in the wrong region.

The results of the census of France, taken on March 8, 1999, have been published. Also, since the book "Administrative Subdivisions of Countries" was written, I've come across some new sources of French population data. The table below replaces the one in the book under the heading "Population history". Note particularly that the "1913" column in the book is replaced by the "1901-03-24" column below. It appears that the data I had were actually derived from the 1901 census.

Country overview: 

Alsace-Lorraine has changed hands several times between France and Germany. In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, Germany won the territory. France recovered it in the Treaty of Versailles after World War I. It was placed under German administration in 1940, but restored to France in 1944 as the German army retreated. It has remained part of France ever since.

ISO code note: ISO standard 3166 contains a specific disclaimer stating that the scope of different codes may overlap. It even gives France and Martinique as an example, explaining that although Martinique is part of France (and presumably covered by the code FR), it also has its own code MQ. However, the only cases of overlap seem to follow the same paradigm as Martinique. The remote territories of a colonial power have their own listings, but can also be considered as covered under the mother country. Until 1993, it was possible to use the standard as if its countries were disjoint, by ignoring the disclaimer and making the mental proviso that codes like FR applied to the mother country only. In 1993, the code FX was added to the standard. FX is described as referring to Metropolitan France, excluding territories such as Martinique. It was withdrawn again in 1997, but remains an "exceptionally reserved code element".

Other names of country: 

1. Danish: Frankrig
2. Dutch: Frankrijk, Franse Republiek (formal)
3. English: French Republic (formal)
4. Finnish: Ranska
5. French: France f, République f française (formal)
6. German: Frankreich n
7. Icelandic: Frakkland
8. Italian: Francia f
9. Norwegian: Frankrike, Republikken Frankrike (formal)
10. Portuguese: França f, República f Francesa (formal)
11. Spanish: Francia f, República f Francesa (formal)
12. Swedish: Frankrike

Origin of name: 

Land of the Franks.

Primary subdivisions: 

France, in Europe and adjacent islands (Corsica), is divided into 96 départements (departments). It also has a number of possessions, some of which are classified as départements d'outre-mer (overseas departments). The overseas departments are nominally equivalent in status to the continental ones, but they are listed as separate countries here, following ISO 3166-1.

Note on collation sequence: In French usage, Bas, Haut, and their feminine and plural forms are not considered part of the collation object. For example, Haute-Marne is alphabetized as if it were "Marne, Haute", and comes between Marne and Mayenne.

Postal codes: 

France uses five-digit postal codes (codes postaux). The first two digits of the postal code are the same as the ISO code for the department, except for Corse-du-Sud (ISO code 2A, postal codes 200xx-201xx) and Haute-Corse (2B, 202xx). Note: postal codes for French addresses can be identified by prefixing them with "F-".

Further subdivisions:

See the Arrondissements of France page.

The departments of France are subdivided into arrondissements, which are subdivided into cantons, which are (in general) subdivided into communes. (The same words are generally used in English. The basic meaning of arrondissement is a rounding off, or rounding out.) In densely populated areas, there may be several cantons in a commune. Paris is divided into 20 arrondissements, but they are legally equivalent to cantons. On 1988-01-01, there were 22 regions, 96 departments, 326 arrondissements, 3,827 cantons, and 36,538 communes in metropolitan France (France in Europe, including Corsica). The word circonscription (circumscription, constituency) is used in France and its former colonies to describe an administrative division at any level.

In the past, various ministries of the French government found it convenient to group the departments into régions. Each one used a slightly different grouping. In 1960, the present set of regions was adopted as a standard for all ministries. The regions have gradually taken on an administrative structure, including councils, elections, and budgets. For a country the size of France, 96 departments is an unwieldy number, and it's possible that the regions will eventually become the basic administrative divisions. The regions of France are as follows.

Note: I have assigned arbitrary HASC-like codes to the regions for the possible convenience of those who need to divide France up by regions rather than departments. The colon serves to distinguish them from ordinary HASC codes. There is no duplication between these codes and the HASC department codes (even if the colons are replaced with periods).

The six regions whose NUTS codes begin with FR2 form a group which the NUTS standard designates as Bassin Parisien. Similarly, FR4 is Est; FR5 is Ouest; FR6 is Sud-Ouest; FR7 is Centre-Est; and FR8 is Méditerranée. The NUTS codes beginning with FR9 are assigned to the overseas departments.

Territorial extent: 

1. Charente-Maritime includes the Île d'Oléron and Île de Ré.
2. Corse-du-Sud includes Île Cavallo in the Strait of Bonifacio.
3. Côte-d'Or includes an exclave that lies between Nièvre and Saône-et-Loire, consisting of the commune of Ménessaire.
4. Finistère includes the Île d'Ouessant and Île de Sein.
5. Hautes-Pyrénées includes two exclaves within Pyrénées-Atlantiques, containing five communes, including Luquet and Séron.
6. Manche includes the Îles Chausey in the Gulf of Saint-Malo.
7. Meurthe-et-Moselle includes an exclave within Meuse, consisting of the commune of Othe.
8. Morbihan includes the Île de Groix and Belle-Île.
9. Nord includes an exclave within Pas-de-Calais, containing three communes, including Boursies.
10. Île des Faisans, in the Bidassoa River, is a condominium of France and Spain. It lies in Pyrénées-Atlantiques.
11. Var includes the Îles d'Hyères.
12. Vaucluse includes an exclave within Drôme, containing the canton of Valréas.
13. Vendée includes the Île d'Yeu.
14. The following remote territories of France are treated as separate countries by ISO 3166-1, so they are not included here: French Guiana, French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, New Caledonia, Reunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and Wallis and Futuna. Each of the overseas departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Reunion) has also been a region since 1974.

Origins of names: 

When the departments of France were created in 1790, they were named fairly systematically after the geographic features that marked them. The following 51 rivers have all contributed to department names: Ain, Aisne, Allier, Ardèche, Ariège, Aube, Aude, Aveyron, Charente, Cher, Corrèze, Creuse, Dordogne, Doubs, Drôme, Eure, Gard, Garonne, Gers, Gironde, Hérault, Ille, Indre, Isère, Loir, Loire, Loiret, Lot, Maine, Marne, Mayenne, Meurthe, Meuse, Moselle, Nièvre, Oise, Orne, Rhin (Rhine), Rhône, Saône, Sarthe, Seine, Sèvre Nantaise, Sèvre Niortaise, Somme, Tarn, Var, Vendée, Vienne, Vilaine, and Yonne. Topographic features used in department names include five mountain ranges (Alpes (Alps), Jura, Lozère, Pyrénées, and Vosges); two individual mountains (Cantal and Puy de Dôme); and a range of hills (the Côte d'Or). There are also departments named for forests (Ardennes and Yvelines), a gulf (Morbihan), two straits (Pas-de-Calais and Manche), rocky islets (Calvados), a spring (Vaucluse), and a sandy plain (Landes).

Since France so often re-uses name elements (there are six departments and one region containing Loire in their names), I have given the probable origins of name elements rather than the full names.

1. Alpes: probably from an Indo-European root meaning mountain, high place
2. Alsace: from ethnic name, probably Germanic for "those of foreign parts"; or, land of the Ill (River)
3. Aquitaine: from ethnic name Aquitani; or, Latin Aquitania: land of water
4. Ardennes: said to come from Celtic ardu-: high
5. Atlantique: for the Atlantic Ocean, which was probably named for Atlas, a Titan of Greek mythology
6. Aube: from Latin alba: white
7. Auvergne: from ethnic name Arverni, from Gallic are verno: at the alders
8. Bas, Basse: French for low (m., f.), usually applied to downstream regions
9. Belfort: Latin Bellofortis: beautiful and strong
10. Bouches-du-Rhône: French for Mouths of the Rhône River
11. Bourgogne: Germanic Burgundja, either from Indo-European bhrghu: tall, or from Gothic baurgjans: inhabitants of fortified places
12. Bretagne: Land of the Bretons
13. Calvados: from the rocks of Calvados. When the department was founded in 1790, Delaunay, a deputy from the area, stated that the rocks had been named for the galleon San Salvador (misspelled Çalvador) of the Spanish Armada, which foundered on them. This theory has not been confirmed.
14. Cantal: Mediterranean root kanto: stone, mountain
15. Centre: French for center
16. Champagne: Latin campania: countryside
17. Charente: from Gallic word for sandy
18. Corrèze: Latin Curretia, from pre-Latin cur: stream
19. Corse: from ethnic name Corsi, possibly from Phoenician horsi: wooded
20. Corse-du-Sud: French for Southern Corsica
21. Côte-d'Azur: French: blue coast (coined by Stephen Liégeard in his 1887 book, La Côte d'Azur)
22. Côte-d'Or: French: golden hillside (from color of grapevines, or their monetary value)
23. Côtes-d'Armor: coasts of Armorica (ancient name of Bretagne)
24. Côtes-du-Nord: French: northern coasts
25. Creuse: French: hollow (adj. f.), describing the river's course through gorges. (The adjective and the name of the river haven't always been the same, but have undergone parallel evolution.)
26. Deux-Sèvres: French: two Sèvres, referring to the rivers Sèvre Nantaise and Sèvre Niortaise
27. Doubs: from Celtic dubis: black
28. Finistère: Latin finis terrae: end of the earth
29. Franche-Comté: French for free county. From 1361 to 1678, Bourgogne was divided into a duchy, which belonged to France, and the free county, which was exempt from tribute to the king.
30. Gascogne: Latin Vasconia: land of the Basques
31. Gironde: the estuary of the Garonne River. In ancient times they had the same name.
32. Haut, Haute, Hautes: French for high (m., f., f. pl.), usually used for upstream regions
33. Île-de-France: French: Island of France (the area around Paris, once the only territory of the King of France)
34. Indre: Latin Angerum, from Frankish anger: prairie
35. Jura: from Celtic juris: wooded heights
36. Isère: from pre-Celtic Isara, in which ara means river
37. Landes: from Gallic landa: flatlands
38. Languedoc: French Langue d'Oc: language of "oc" (in the local dialect, "oc" was used for "yes")
39. Limousin: province of Limoges, from ethnic name Lemovices, from Gallic lemo: elm, vices: warrior
40. Lorraine: from Lotharingie, the domain given to Lothaire in the partition of Charlemagne's realm (A.D. 843)
41. Lot: the river's Latin name was Ulta, which became Olt in the Middle Ages. The definite article in the expression "l'Olt" became absorbed into the name itself.
42. Maine: see Mayenne
43. Manche: = sleeve, from the French name for the English Channel, which resembles a sleeve; or from a Celtic word for channel
44. Maritime: French: seaside (adjective)
45. Marne: Gallic, apparently from Matrona, a goddess of motherhood
46. Mayenne: from Celtic Meduana, in which medu- means mead. The name formerly applied to both the Mayenne and the Maine, but underwent divergent evolution. (The Mayenne meets the Sarthe near Angers, forming the Maine, which flows into the Loire 10 km. further downstream.)
47. Midi: French for South (as a region rather than a compass point), from Latin meridies: midday (sun stands in the south at midday in those latitudes)
48. Morbihan: Breton mor: sea, bihan: little, by contrast with the Atlantic Ocean, a great sea
49. Moselle: from Latin Mosella, a diminutive form of Mosa, the Latin name for the Meuse. The Moselle was being likened to a smaller Meuse.
50. Nord: French for North
51. Normandie: from ethnic name Normand (people from the North)
52. Orientales: French for eastern (feminine plural), from Latin oriens: rising (direction of the rising sun)
53. Paris: from ethnic name Parisii; shortened from Latin name Lutetia Parisiorum
54. Pas-de-Calais: French: Strait of Calais. Calais comes from the ethnic name Caleti.
55. Pays de la Loire: French for land of the Loire River
56. Poitou: province of Poitier, from ethnic name Pictones
57. Provence: Latin Provincia: the province
58. Puy-de-Dôme: Puy comes from Latin podium: high place. The mountain had a temple dedicated to Mercury Dumias, whence Dôme
59. Pyrénées: Mountains named for a village named Pyrene.
60. Rhin: from the Celtic root renos: river
61. Rhône: came through Latin Rhodanus from an old root Rhod-: river
62. Roussillon: from Ruscino, name of a city in the province (modern Château-Roussillon)
63. Somme: from Celtic samara: tranquil
64. Val-de, Val-d': French for "valley of"
65. Var: from a Celtic root meaning river
66. Vaucluse: after the source of the Sorgue River at a place called, in Latin, Vallis clusa: enclosed valley
67. Vendée: from Gallic vindo: white, clear, describing the river
68. Vosges: named for the god Vosegus
69. Yonne: for a tutelary goddess named Icauna

Change history: 

There have been numerous minor boundary adjustments between departments.

The basic set of departments dates back to 1790-02-26, when the French National Assembly abolished the old provinces and established 83 departments to replace them. As far as I know, this was the first time anyone had tried to create a reasoned, methodical set of administrative divisions for any country. Each department was to be small enough that all its citizens could reach its capital in a day's journey. The 83 departments at that time were Ain, Aisne, Allier, Ardèche, Ardennes, Arriège, Aube, Aude, Aveiron, Bas-Rhin, Basses-Alpes, Basses-Pyrénées, Bouches du Rhône, Calvados, Cantal, Charente, Charente Inférieure, Cher, Corrèze, Corse, Côte-d'Or, Côtes du Nord, Creuse, Dordogne, Doubs, Drôme, Eure, Eure et Loir, Finistère, Gard, Gers, Gironde, Haut-Rhin, Haute-Garonne, Haute-Loire, Haute-Marne, Hautes-Alpes, Haute-Saône, Hautes-Pyrénées, Haute-Vienne, Hérault, Ille et Vilaine, Indre, Indre et Loire, Isère, Jura, La Manche, Landes, Loir et Cher, Loire Inférieure, Loiret, Lot, Lot et Garonne, Lozère, Marne, Mayenne, Mayne et Loire, Meurte, Meuse, Morbihan, Mozelle, Nord, Nyèvre, Oise, Orne, Paris, Pas de Calais, Puy-de-Dôme, Pyrénées Orientales, Rhône et Loire, Saône et Loire, Sarte, Seine et Marne, Seine et Oise, Seine Inférieure, Deux Sèvres, Somme, Tarn, Var, Vendée, Vienne, Vosges, and Yonne. Note that some spellings have changed slightly since then.

The departments were initially defined as sets of communes. Since the drafters had inaccurate maps, it often happened that a commune was placed in a department with which it was not contiguous. The resulting exclaves were gradually eliminated in the early 19th century, although some still remain.

1. 1791-09-14: Avignon and Comtat-Venaissin, corresponding roughly to modern Vaucluse department, annexed to France following a plebiscite.
2. 1791-12-12: Name of Mayne et Loire department changed to Maine-et-Loire.
3. 1792-03-26: Avignon and Comtat-Venaissin split and annexed to Bouches du Rhône and Drôme departments.
4. 1792-11-27: Savoie (corresponding to modern Haute-Savoie) annexed to France as the new department of Mont-Blanc (capital Chambéry).
5. 1793-01-31: Comté de Nice annexed to France. It became Alpes-Maritimes department on 1793-02-04.
6. 1793-02-13: Monaco and two nearby cities annexed to France and merged with Alpes-Maritimes department.
7. 1793-03-23: Porrentruy and Delémont annexed to France as the new department of Mont-Terrible (capital Porrentruy).
8. 1793-06-25: The territory originally consituting Avignon and Comtat-Venaissain reintegrated to form Vaucluse department.
9. 1793-08-11: Corse split into the departments of Golo (corresponding to present-day Haute-Corse, capital Bastia) and Liamone (Corse-du-Sud, capital Ajaccio).
10. 1793-12-12: Name of Gironde department changed to Bec-d'Ambes.
11. 1793: Rhône et Loire department split into two departments, Loire and Rhône.
12. 1795: Conquered territories in Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg formed into the departments of Deux-Nèthes, Dyle, Escaut, Forêts, Jemmapes, Lys, Meuse-Inférieure, Ourthe, Sambre-et-Meuse.
13. 1795-08-22: Name of Paris department changed to Seine.
14. 1798: Conquered territories in Germany and Switzerland formed into the departments of Léman, Mont-Tonnerre, Rhin-et-Moselle, Roër, and Sarre.
15. 1798: Name of Bec-d'Ambes department changed to Gironde, reversing the change of 1793.
16. 1800-02-17: Mont-Terrible department merged with Haut-Rhin.
17. 1802: Conquered territories in Italy and Egypt formed into the departments of Doire, Marengo, Pô, Sesia, Stura, and Tanaro.
18. 1804-05-18: First empire declared. Greek conquests had added three loosely attached departments of Corcyre, Ithaque, and Mer Égée.
19. 1805: Conquered territories in Italy formed into the departments of Apennin, Gênes, and Montenotte.
20. 1808: Conquered territories in Italy formed into the departments of Arno, Méditerranée, Ombrone, and Taro.
21. 1808-11-04: Parts of Aveyron, Gers, Haute-Garonne, Lot, and Lot-et-Garonne departments merged to form Tarn-et-Garonne.
22. 1810: Conquered territories in Italy and Switzerland formed into the departments of Simplon, Tibre, and Trasimène.
23. 1811: Conquered territories in Netherlands and Germany formed into the departments of Bouches-de-la-Meuse, Bouches-de-l'Elbe, Bouches-de-l'Escaut, Bouches-de-l'Yssel, Bouches-du-Rhin, Bouches-du-Weser, Ems-Occidental, Ems-Oriental, Ems-Supérieur, Frise, Lippe, Yssel-Supérieur, and Zuyderzée.
24. 1811-04-19: Golo and Liamone departments reunited to form Corse.
25. 1812: Capital of Vendée department moved from Fontenay to La Roche-sur-Yon.
26. 1814-05-30: Treaty of Paris restored France to approximately the borders of 1792-01-01. In particular, Monaco was restored as an independent principality.
27. 1815-11-20: Second Treaty of Paris adjusted the borders of France, causing changes in the territory of Ain, Ardennes, Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, Moselle, and Nord departments.
28. 1824-07-21: exclave of Madré merged with Mayenne department; exclave of Saint-Denis-de-Villenette merged with Orne.
29. 1860-06-15: Part of Var department transferred to Alpes-Maritimes.
30. 1860-06-23: Nice and Savoie, returned to France on 1860-06-12, organized into the departments of Alpes-Maritimes, Haute-Savoie, and Savoie.
31. 1871-05-10: By Treaty of Frankfurt, Bas-Rhin department and parts of Haut-Rhin, Meurthe, Moselle, and Vosges ceded to Germany.
32. 1871-09-07: Remaining parts of Meurthe and Moselle departments merged to form Meurthe-et-Moselle. This was supposed to be a provisional arrangement, but has stood until the present. The section of Haut-Rhin which remained in France eventually became known as the Territoire de Belfort.
33. 1919-10-17: Alsace-Lorraine restored to France, as the departments of Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, and Moselle. These were known as Unterelsaß, Oberelsaß, and Lothringen respectively under German administration.
34. 1922: Territoire de Belfort given the status of department.
35. 1940-07-01: Pursuant to the terms of the Franco-German armistice (1940-06-22), Alsace-Lorraine became administratively part of Germany. It became part of two new Gauen (districts): Lothringen-Pfalz (French: Lorraine-Palatinat) and Baden-Elsaß (French: Bade-Alsace).
36. 1941-09-04: Charente-Inférieure department renamed to Charente-Maritime, to avoid the negative connotations of "Inférieure" (lower, or inferior).
37. 1944: With the liberation of France, Alsace-Lorraine reverted to its pre-1940 status.
38. 1947-02-10: Tende, La Brigue, and other villages formerly in Italy annexed to Alpes-Maritimes by the peace treaty.
39. 1955-01-18: Seine-Inférieure department renamed to Seine-Maritime.
40. 1955-03-31: Capital of Ain department renamed from Bourg to Bourg-en-Bresse.
41. 1957-03-09: Loire-Inférieure department renamed to Loire-Atlantique.
42. 1964-07-10: Seine (capital Paris) and Seine-et-Oise (capital Versailles) departments reorganized, forming the departments of Essonne, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne, Val-d'Oise, Ville de Paris, and Yvelines. Of these, Ville de Paris was formed entirely from Seine. Essonne, Val-d'Oise, and Yvelines were formed entirely from Seine-et-Oise. The other three contain parts of both former departments.
43. 1965: Capital of Essonne renamed from Évry-Petit-Bourg to Évry.
44. 1966: Capital of Ardennes renamed from Mézières to Charleville-Mézières because of the merging of the two cities.
45. 1967-12-29: Territory transferred from Ain and Isère departments to Rhône, in order to unite the Lyon metropolitan area within one department.
46. 1969: Capital (préfecture) of Val-d'Oise department moved from Pontoise to the nearby new town of Cergy-Pontoise.
47. 1969-10-10: Basses-Pyrénées department renamed to Pyrénées-Atlantiques, to avoid the negative connotations of "Basses" (low).
48. 1970-04-13: Basses-Alpes department renamed to Alpes-de-Haute-Provence.
49. 1974: Capital of Var moved from Draguignan to Toulon.
50. 1975-05-15: Corsica region split from Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region.
51. 1976-01-01: Corse department (capital Ajaccio) split into Corse-du-Sud and Haute-Corse.
52. 1988-03-17: Capital of Haute-Loire department renamed from Le Puy to Le Puy-en-Velay, its historic name.
53. 1990-02-27: Côtes-du-Nord department renamed to Côtes-d'Armor, to avoid the supposedly negative connotations of "North" for tourism.
54. 1991-01-17: FIPS Change Notice #9, affecting FIPS PUB 10-3, dropped the department codes shown in the table under Primary subdivisions, and replaced them with the region codes shown under Further subdivisions.
55. 1991-05-13: Status of Corse region changed to collectivité territoriale (territorial collectivity).
56. 1995-11-17: Capital of Marne department renamed from Châlons-sur-Marne to Châlons-en-Champagne. Former name put back into use from 1997-05-01 to 1998-01-04.

Note: Vilaine is the feminine of the French adjective vilain, which means disreputable, vile, offensive. Can it be long before the name of Ille-et-Vilaine department is expurgated?

Other names of subdivisions: 

1. Alpes-de-Haute-Provence: Alpes da Alta Provença (Portuguese); Basses-Alpes (obsolete)
2. Alsace: Alsacia (Spanish); Alsazia (Italian); Elsaß (German)
3. Aquitaine: Aquitania (Italian); Aquitanien (German)
4. Auvergne: Alvernia (Italian)
5. Bas-Rhin: Unterelsaß (German-obsolete)
6. Basse-Normandie: Baja Normandía (Spanish); Bassa Normandia (Italian); Lower Normandy (English)
7. Bourgogne: Borgogna (Italian); Borgoña (Spanish); Burgund (German); Burgundy (English)
8. Bretagne: Bretagna (Italian); Bretaña (Spanish); Brittany (English)
9. Centre: Centro (Italian)
10. Champagne-Ardenne: Champaña-Ardenne (Spanish)
11. Charente-Maritime: Charente-Inférieure (obsolete)
12. Corse: Córcega (Spanish); Córsega (Portuguese); Corsica (English, Italian, Swedish); Korsika (German, Norwegian)
13. Côtes-d'Armor: Côtes-du-Nord (obsolete)
14. Franche-Comté: Franca Contea (Italian); Franco-Condado (Spanish)
15. Haute-Garonne: Alto Garona (Spanish)
16. Haute-Normandie: Alta Normandia (Italian); Alta Normandía (Spanish); Upper Normandy (English)
17. Hautes-Pyrénées: Altos Pirineos (Spanish)
18. Haut-Rhin: Oberelsaß (German-obsolete)
19. Île-de-France: Regione Parigina (Italian)
20. Landes: Landas (Spanish)
21. Languedoc-Roussillon: Languedoc-Rosellon (Spanish); Linguadoca e Rossiglione (Italian)
22. Limousin: Lemosin (Spanish); Limosino (Italian)
23. Loire-Atlantique: Loire-Inférieure (obsolete)
24. Lorraine: Lorena (Italian, Spanish); Lothringen (German)
25. Midi-Pyrénées: Midi e Pirenei (Italian)
26. Moselle: Lothringen (German-obsolete)
27. Pays de la Loire: Regione della Loira (Italian)
28. Picardie: Picardía (Spanish); Piccardia (Italian)
29. Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur: Provenza-Alpes-Costa de Azul (Spanish); Provenza-Alpi-Costa Azzurra (Italian)
30. Pyrénées-Atlantiques: Basses-Pyrénées (obsolete); Pirinio Atlantiarrak (Basque)
31. Pyrénées-Orientales: Pirineos Orientales (Spanish); Pirineus Orientais (Portuguese)
32. Rhône-Alpes: Rodano e Alpi (Italian)
33. Savoie: Sabóia (Portuguese), Savoia (Italian)
34. Seine-Maritime: Seine-Inférieure (obsolete); Sena Marítimo (Portuguese)
35. Vendée: Vendéia (Portuguese)

Population history:

Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, and Moselle were not part of France from 1871 to 1919.
Figures for Corse-du-Sud before 1976 represent Corse, which included present-day Corse-du-Sud and Haute-Corse.
Figures for Ville de Paris before 1964 represent Seine, which included present-day Ville de Paris and most of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne.
Figures for Yvelines before 1964 represent Seine-et-Oise, which included present-day Essonne, Val-d'Oise, Yvelines, and small parts of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne.
Six other departments have changed their names during the period covered. See "Change history" for details.
1851 and 1901 census data are predominantly from Quid 1993, a French encyclopedic almanac. It shows adjusted populations for areas corresponding to the present-day boundaries of the departments.