   #copyright

France

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Countries; European
Countries

                          République française
   French Republic

   Flag of France Emblem of France
   Flag           Emblem
   Motto: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
   "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity"
   Anthem: La Marseillaise
   Location of France
   Capital
   (and largest city)      Paris
                           48°52′N 2°19.59′E
     Official languages    French
   Government              Unitary republic
    - President            Jacques Chirac
    - Prime Minister       Dominique de Villepin
          Formation
    - French State         843 ( Treaty of Verdun)
    - Current constitution 1958 ( 5th Republic)
       Accession to EU     March 25, 1957
                                   Area
    - Total ^1             674,843 km² ( 40th)
                           260,558 sq mi
    - Metropolitan France  551,695 km² ^3 ( 47th)
                           213,010 sq mi
    - Land area ^2         543,965 km² ^4 ( 47th)
                           210,026 sq mi
                                Population
    - Jan 2006 estimate^5
    - Total^1              63,587,700 ( 20th)
    - Metropolitan France  61,044,684 ( 20th)
    - Density              112/km² ( 89th)
                           291/sq mi
         GDP ( PPP)        2005 estimate
    - Total                $1.830 trillion ( 7th)
    - Per capita           $29,316 ( 20th)
         HDI  (2004)       0.942 (high) ( 16th)
          Currency         Euro ( €)^6, CFP Franc^7

                           ( EUR,    XPF)
          Time zone        CET^2 ( UTC+1)
    - Summer ( DST)        CEST^2 ( UTC+2)
        Internet TLD       .fr^8
        Calling code       +33
   ^1 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.
   ^2 Metropolitan (i.e. European) France only.
   ^3 French National Geographic Institute data.
   ^4 French Land Register data, which exclude lakes, ponds and glaciers
   larger than 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) as well as the estuaries
   of rivers.
   ^5 Official INSEE source
   ^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, .gf and .yt. France also uses .eu, shared with other members
   of the European Union.

   France (French: IPA: [fʁɑ̃s]), officially the French Republic (French:
   République française, IPA: [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a country whose
   metropolitan territory is located in Western Europe and which also
   comprises various overseas islands and territories located in other
   continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to
   the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the
   Atlantic Ocean. French people often refer to Metropolitan France as
   L'Hexagone (The " Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its
   territory.

   France is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy,
   Monaco, Andorra, and Spain. In some of its overseas departments, France
   also shares land borders with Brazil, Suriname, and the Netherlands
   Antilles. France is also linked to the United Kingdom via the Channel
   Tunnel, which passes underneath the English Channel (La Manche in
   French).

   The French Republic is a democracy which is organised as a unitary
   semi-presidential republic. It is a developed country with the
   sixth-largest economy in the world. Its main ideals are expressed in
   the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. France is one
   of the founding members of the European Union, and has the largest land
   area of all members. France is also a founding member of the United
   Nations, and a member of La Francophonie, the G8, and the Latin Union.
   It is one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security
   Council wielding veto power, and it is also one of eight acknowledged
   nuclear powers. France is the most popular international tourist
   destination in the world, receiving over 75 million foreign tourists
   annually. The name France originates from the Franks, a Germanic tribe
   that occupied the region after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
   More precisely, the region around Paris, called Île-de-France, was the
   original French royal demesne.

Geography

   While the main territory of France ( metropolitan France; French: la
   Métropole, France métropolitaine or informally l'hexagone) is located
   in Western Europe, France is also comprised of a number of territories
   in North America, the Caribbean, South America, the southern Indian
   Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and Antarctica. These territories have
   varying forms of government ranging from overseas département to "
   overseas country".

   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). The highest
   point in western Europe is situated in the French Alps: Mont Blanc at
   4,810 metres (15,781  ft) above sea-level. There are several other
   elevated regions such as the Massif Central, the Jura, the Vosges, and
   the Ardennes which are quite rocky and forested. France also has
   extensive river systems such as the Loire, the Rhône, the Garonne and
   the Seine.

   At 674,843 square kilometres (260,558 sq mi), France is the world's
   40th-largest country (after Myanmar). Metropolitan France, with 551,695
   square kilometres (213,010 sq mi), is somewhat larger than Yemen and
   Thailand, and somewhat smaller than Kenya and the US state of Texas.
   France would fit approximately 13 times into Canada.

   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 square kilometres
   (4,260,000  sq mi), just behind the EEZ of the United States
   (11,351,000 km² / 4,383,000 sq mi), but ahead of the EEZ of Australia
   (8,232,000 km² / 3,178,000 sq mi). 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.

Contrast and diversity

   France is known around the world as a diverse country in its people,
   architectures and landscapes. About 56% of the French population claim
   to have foreign background , which makes France one of the most diverse
   countries in Europe. Old and more recent immigrants came to France from
   the five continents (Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and the Americas).
   China and the United Kingdom contributed most of its immigrants in
   2005. France is also home of the highest point in Europe ( Mont-Blanc
   4,810 m; 15,780 ft) and the lowest point of Europe, Delta du Rhone,
   (-5 m; -15 ft). France is seventeen-times smaller than Brazil and half
   the size of Ontario, which means that one hour by plane or eight hours
   by car are enough to cross the whole country from one extremity to the
   other. Despite its size, France's landscapes are extremely varied from
   one region to another, ranging from Paris and its suburbs to high
   alpine territory to oceanfront resort towns.

   On the one hand, France is highly densified with old architecture such
   as the city of Paris or the Centre of Troyes. The French Familly code
   is 200 years old and has been written under Napoleon. On the other
   hand, France is a highly developed country with an extensive highway
   network (for example: France is slightly bigger than California but its
   highway network is more than twice as long), 32,000 kilometres (20,000
   mi) of railways ( SNCF), along with modern ski resorts and gigantic
   malls. France is also the country with the fastest average internet
   connection speed ( ADSL and more recently optical fibre in Paris), and
   in 2004, for the 3rd time in a row, the French healthcare system has
   been ranked number one in the world by the World Health Organisation.

History

Rome to Revolution

   The Chambord castle
   Enlarge
   The Chambord castle

   The borders of modern France are roughly the same as those of ancient
   Gaul, which was inhabited by Celtic Gauls. Gaul was conquered for Rome
   by Julius Caesar in the 1st century BC, and the Gauls eventually
   adopted Roman speech (Latin, which evolved into the French language)
   and Roman culture. Christianity took root in the 2nd century and 3rd
   century AD, and became so firmly established by the fourth and fifth
   centuries that St. Jerome wrote that Gaul was the only region “free
   from heresy”. In the Middle Ages, the French would adopt this as a
   justification for calling themselves "the Most-Christian Kingdom of
   France".

   In the 4th century AD, Gaul's eastern frontier along the Rhine was
   overrun by Germanic tribes, principally the Franks, from whom the
   ancient name of "Francie" was derived. The modern name "France" derives
   from the name of the feudal domain of the Capetian Kings of France
   around Paris. Existence as a separate entity began with the Treaty of
   Verdun (843), with the division of Charlemagne's Carolingian empire
   into East Francia, Middle Francia and Western Francia. Western Francia
   approximated the area occupied by modern France.

   The Carolingians ruled France until 987, when Hugh Capet, Duke of
   France and Count of Paris, was crowned King of France. His descendants,
   the Capetian, Valois and Bourbon dynasties progressively unified the
   country through a series of wars and dynastic inheritance. The monarchy
   reached its height during the 17th century and the reign of Louis XIV.
   At this time France possessed the largest population in Europe (see
   Demographics of France) and had tremendous influence over European
   politics, economy, and culture. Towards the end of this era, France
   played a major role in the American Revolution by providing capital and
   some military assets to the anti-British rebels.

Monarchy to Republic

   The monarchy ruled France until the French Revolution, in 1789. King
   Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette, were executed, along with
   thousands of other French citizens. After a series of short-lived
   governmental schemes, 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). In the course of several
   wars, his armies conquered most of continental Europe, with members of
   the Bonaparte family being appointed as monarchs of newly established
   kingdoms.

   Following Napoleon's final defeat, in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo,
   the French monarchy was re-established. In 1830, a civil uprising
   established the constitutional July Monarchy, which lasted until 1848.
   The short-lived Second Republic ended in 1852 when Louis-Napoléon
   Bonaparte proclaimed the Second French Empire. Louis-Napoléon was
   unseated following defeat in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 to be
   replaced by the Third Republic.
   Eugène Delacroix - La Liberté guidant le peuple ("Liberty leading the
   People"), a symbol of the French Revolution of 1830
   Enlarge
   Eugène Delacroix - La Liberté guidant le peuple ("Liberty leading the
   People"), a symbol of the French Revolution of 1830

   France had colonial possessions, in various forms, since the beginning
   of the 17th century until the 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries,
   its global colonial empire was the second largest in the world behind
   the British Empire. At its peak, between 1919 and 1939, the second
   French colonial empire extended over 12,347,000 square kilometres
   (4,767,000 sq. mi) of land. Including metropolitan France, the total
   area of land under French sovereignty reached 12,898,000 square
   kilometres (4,980,000 sq. mi) in the 1920s and 1930s, which is 8.6% of
   the world's land area.

   Though ultimately a victor in World War I, France had suffered enormous
   losses both human and material that weakened it for the decades to
   come. The 1930s were marked by a variety of social reforms introduced
   by the Popular Front government.

   During World War II, after a short but grievous and violent battle,
   France's political leadership chose to surrender to Germany in 1940.
   The policy of collaboration with the enemy, a move that some disagreed
   with, led to the formation of the Free French Forces outside of France
   and of the French Resistance inside. France was liberated by the Allies
   in 1944.

   The French Fourth Republic was established after World War II, and
   struggled to maintain its economic and political status as a dominant
   nation state. France attempted to hold on to its colonial empire, but
   soon ran into trouble. The half-hearted 1946 attempt at regaining
   control of French Indochina resulted in the First Indochina War, which
   finally ended with its 1954 defeat and withdrawal. Only months later,
   France faced a new, even harsher conflict in its oldest major colony,
   Algeria.

   The debate over whether or not to keep control of Algeria, then home to
   over 1 million European settlers, wracked the country and nearly led to
   civil war. In 1958, the weak and unstable Fourth Republic gave way to
   the Fifth Republic, with a greatly strengthened presidency; in this
   role, Charles de Gaulle managed to keep the country together while
   taking steps to end the war. The Algerian War of Independence was
   concluded with peace negotiations in 1962 that led to Algerian
   independence.

   In recent decades, France's reconciliation and cooperation with Germany
   have proved central to the political and economic integration of the
   evolving European Union, including the introduction of the euro in
   January 1999. France has been at the forefront of the European Union
   member states seeking to exploit the momentum of monetary union to
   create a more unified and capable European Union political, defence and
   security apparatus. However the French electorate voted against
   ratification of the European Constitutional Treaty in May 2005.

Government and politics

   Symbol of the French government
   Enlarge
   Symbol of the French government
   The basic principles that the French Republic must respect are found in
   the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
   Enlarge
   The basic principles that the French Republic must respect are found in
   the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

   The constitution of the Fifth Republic was approved by referendum on 28
   September 1958. It greatly strengthened the authority of the executive
   in relation to Parliament.

   Under the constitution, the President of the French Republic is elected
   directly by universal adult suffrage for a 5-year (originally 7-year)
   term. Presidential arbitration assures regular functioning of the
   public powers and the continuity of the state. The president names the
   prime minister, presides over the cabinet, commands the armed forces,
   and concludes treaties.

   The French parliament is a bicameral legislature comprising a National
   Assembly (Assemblée Nationale) and a Senate. The National Assembly
   deputies represent local constituencies and are directly elected for
   5-year terms. The Assembly has the power to dismiss the cabinet, and
   thus the majority in the Assembly determines the choice of government.
   Senators are chosen by an electoral college for 6-year terms
   (originally 9-year terms), and one half of the seats are submitted to
   election every 3 years starting in September 2008.

   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 and lois organiques (laws
   that are directly provided for by the constitution) in some cases. The
   government has a strong influence in shaping the agenda of Parliament.

   For the past thirty years, French politics has been characterised by
   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 right-wing Front National party made
   significant inroads in the early 1980s by seizing on voter concern
   about the perceived decline of France, 'national dissolution' as a
   result of immigration and globalisation, and by advocating tougher
   law-and-order and immigration policies. Lately its share of the votes
   has remained stable at approximately 16%.

   French foreign policy has been largely shaped by membership of the
   European Union. On 29 May 2005 the French electorate voted in the
   referendum with about 55% against ratification of the proposed Treaty
   establishing a Constitution for Europe. 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.

   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.

   France hosts the headquarters of the OECD, UNESCO, Interpol, and the
   International Bureau for Weights and Measures in charge of the
   international metric system.

Administrative divisions

   Nord-Pas de
   Calais
   Picardie
   Haute-
   Normandie
   Île-de-
   France
   Champagne-
   Ardenne
   Lorraine
   Alsace
   Franche-
   Comté
   Bourgogne
   (Burgundy)
   Centre
   Pays-de-la-
   Loire
   Bretagne
   (Brittany)
   Basse-
   Normandie
   Poitou-
   Charentes
   Limousin
   Auvergne
   Rhône-
   Alpes
   Aquitaine
   Midi-
   Pyrénées
   Languedoc-
   Roussillon
   Provence-Alpes-
   Côte d'Azur
   Corse
   (Corsica)
   Belgium
   Luxembourg
   Germany
   Switzerland
   Italy
   English Channel
   United Kingdom
   Bay of
   Biscay
   Andorra
   Spain
   Ligurian
   Sea
   Mediterranean
   Sea
   The 22 régions and 96 départements of metropolitan France.
   Enlarge
   The 22 régions and 96 départements of metropolitan France.

   France is divided into 26 administrative régions: 22 are in
   metropolitan France (21 are on the continental part of metropolitan
   France; one is the "territorial collectivity" of Corse, on the island
   of Corsica, commonly referred to as a région in common speech), and
   four are overseas régions. The régions are further subdivided into 100
   départements. The departments are numbered (mainly alphabetically) and
   this number is used, for instance, in postal codes and vehicle number
   plates.

   The departments are further subdivided into 342 arrondissements, but
   they have no elected assembly and serve only for the districting of
   state administrations. The arrondissements are further divided into
   4,035 cantons, but again these serve only administrative and electoral
   purposes. Finally, the arrondissements are divided into 36,682
   communes, which are municipalities with an elected assembly (municipal
   council).

   The régions, départements, and communes are known as "territorial
   collectivities" (collectivités territoriales), meaning they possess
   local assemblies as well as an executive, while the arrondissements and
   the cantons are mere administrative divisions. Until 1940, the
   arrondissements were also territorial collectivities with an elected
   assembly (arrondissement council), but these were suspended by the
   Vichy regime and definitely abolished by the Fourth Republic in 1946.
   Historically, the cantons were also territorial collectivities with
   their elected assemblies.

   Four of the départements are overseas départements (coterminous with
   the four overseas régions) which are an integral part of France (and
   the EU) and thus enjoy a status similar to metropolitan départments.

   In addition to the 26 régions and 100 départements, the French Republic
   is further made up of four overseas collectivities, one sui generis
   collectivity (New Caledonia), and one overseas territory.

   Overseas collectivities and territories form part of the French
   Republic, but do not form part of the EU or its fiscal area. The
   Pacific territories continue to use the Pacific franc whose value is
   linked to that of the euro. In contrast, the four overseas
   régions/départements used the French franc and now use the euro.

   France also maintains control over a number of small non-permanently
   inhabited islands in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean: Bassas da
   India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova
   Island, Tromelin Island. See Islands controlled by France in the Indian
   and Pacific oceans.

Transport

Military

   The main symbol of French military power in the 21st century: the
   Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
   Enlarge
   The main symbol of French military power in the 21st century: the
   Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.

   The French armed forces are divided into four branches:
     * Army (Armée de Terre)
     * Navy (Marine Nationale)
     * Air Force (Armée de l'Air)
     * Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale), a military police force which
       serves for the most part as a rural and general purpose police
       force.

   Military age is 17. Since the Algerian War of Independence,
   conscription has been steadily reduced and was abolished under the
   presidency of Jacques Chirac in 1996.

   Among the larger European Union 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. Those
   two countries account for 40% of EU defence spending. In most other EU
   countries, defence spending is less than 1.5% of GDP. About 10% of
   France's defence budget goes towards its force de frappe, or nuclear
   weapons.

Economy

   The first completed Airbus A380 at the "A380 Reveal" event in Toulouse
   on January 18, 2005.
   Enlarge
   The first completed Airbus A380 at the "A380 Reveal" event in Toulouse
   on January 18, 2005.

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

   A member of the G8 group of leading industrialised countries, it ranked
   as the sixth largest economy in the world in 2005, behind the United
   States, Japan, Germany, The People's Republic of China and the United
   Kingdom. France joined 11 other EU members to launch the Euro on
   January 1, 1999, with euro coins and banknotes completely replacing the
   French franc in early 2002.

   According to the OECD, in 2004 France was the world's fifth-largest
   exporter of manufactured goods, behind the United States, Germany,
   Japan, and The People's Republic of China, and ahead of the United
   Kingdom. 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). In 2003 France was the 2nd-largest recipient of
   foreign direct investment among OECD countries at $47 billion, ranking
   behind Luxembourg (where foreign direct investment was essentially
   monetary transfers to banks located in that country) but above the
   United States ($39.9 billion), the United Kingdom ($14.6 billion),
   Germany ($12.9 billion), or Japan ($6.3 billion). In the same year,
   French companies invested $57.3 billion outside of France, ranking
   France as the second most important outward direct investor in the
   OECD, behind the United States ($173.8 billion), and ahead of the
   United Kingdom ($55.3 billion), Japan ($28.8 billion) and Germany ($2.6
   billion).

   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). In 2004, the GDP per hour worked in France was $47.7,
   ranking France above the United States ($46.3), Germany ($42.1), the
   United Kingdom ($39.6), or Japan ($32.5).

   Despite figures showing 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 the US level. The
   reason for this is that a much smaller percentage of the French
   population is working compared to the US, which lowers the GDP per
   capita of France, despite its higher productivity. In fact, France has
   one of the lowest percentages of its population aged 15-64 years at
   work among the OECD countries. In 2004, 68.8% of the French population
   aged 15-64 years was in employment, compared to 80.0% in Japan, 78.9%
   in the UK, 77.2% in the US, and 71.0% in Germany. 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 9% 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.

   As many economists have stressed repeatedly over the years, the main
   issue with the French economy is not an issue of productivity. In their
   opinion, it is an issue of structural reforms, in order to increase the
   size of the working population in the overall population. Liberal and
   Keynesian economists have different answers to that issue. Lower
   working hours and the reluctance to reform the labour market are
   mentioned as weak spots of the French economy in the view of the right
   and lack of government policies fostering social justice by the left.
   Recent government attempts at adjusting the youth labour market, to
   combat unemployment, have met with fierce resistance.

   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). 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).

   France has an important aerospace industry led by the European
   consortium Airbus and is the only European power (excluding Russia) to
   have its own national spaceport ( Centre Spatial Guyanais). 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. As a result of large investment in nuclear
   technology, nearly nine tenths of the energy needs of the country are
   met by nuclear power plants (86.9% in 2005).

   Large tracts of fertile land, the application of modern technology, and
   EU subsidies have combined to make France the leading agricultural
   producer and exporter in Europe. Wheat, poultry, dairy, beef, and pork,
   as well as an internationally recognised foodstuff and wine industry
   are primary French agricultural exports. EU agriculture subsidies to
   France total almost $14 billion.

   Since the end of the Second World War the government made efforts to
   integrate more and more with Germany, both economically and
   politically. Today the two countries form what is often referred to as
   the "core" countries in favour of greater integration of the European
   Union.

Demographics

   View over the city of Lyon
   Enlarge
   View over the city of Lyon

   Since prehistoric times, France has been a crossroads of trade,
   migrations, and invasions. Four basic European ethnic stocks -
   pre-Celtic, Celtic (Gallic and Breton), Latin, and Germanic (Franks,
   Visigoths, Burgundians, Vikings) - have blended over the centuries to
   make up its present population. Besides these "historic" populations,
   new populations have migrated to France since the 19th century:
   Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, Poles, Armenians, Jews from Eastern
   Europe and the Maghreb, Arabs and Berbers from the Maghreb, Black
   Africans and Caribbeans, and Vietnamese, to list only the most
   prominent. It is currently estimated that about 50% of the French
   population descends in varying amounts from these different waves of
   migrations, making France one of the most ethnically diverse countries
   in the world, despite the still popular stereotypes of France as an
   essentially Gallic country. 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.

Population

   Starting with the 19th century, the historical evolution of the
   population in France has been extremely atypical in the Western World.
   Unlike the rest of Europe, France did not experience a strong
   population growth in the 19th century and first half of the 20th
   century. 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.

   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. However,
   first results from the 2004 French census have greatly surprised
   demographers. The census revealed that population growth rebounded
   significantly after the 1999 census, something nobody had anticipated.
   From 1999 to 2003, annual population growth was 0.58%. In 2004,
   population growth was 0.68%, almost reaching North American levels.
   2004 was the year with the highest increase in French population since
   1974. France is now well ahead of all other European countries (except
   for the Republic of Ireland). 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. In 2004 the
   natural increase in France's population reached 256,000, but figures
   for other European countries are not available yet.

   These unexpected results bear great consequences for the future. At the
   moment, France is the third most populous country of Europe, behind
   Russia and Germany. 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. 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).

   In 2005, birth and fertility rates continued to increase. The natural
   increase of births over deaths rose to 270,100. The lifetime fertility
   rate rose to 1.94 in 2005, from 1.92 in 2004. Net immigration fell
   slightly in 2005 to 97,500. In France immigration accounts for about on
   quarter of the total population increase--the average for all of Europe
   is about 80%.

   If these estimates become reality, it may fundamentally alter the
   balance of power in Brussels. It would be the first time since the
   1860s that France is the nation with the largest population within
   Europe (Russia excluded). In mid-2004 the EU had 460 million
   inhabitants, 13.6% of whom were living in France (including overseas
   départements). 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.

   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 %. France thereby replaced the United States as
   the world's top destination for asylum-seekers in 2004.

   A perennial political issue concerns rural depopulation. Over the
   period 1960-1999 fifteen rural départements experienced a decline in
   population. In the most extreme case, the population of Creuse fell by
   24%.

Immigrants

   As of 2006, the French national institute of statistics (INSEE)
   estimated that 4.9 million foreign-born immigrants currently live
   France (8% of the country's population) including :
     * 700,000 Algerians
     * 600,000 Moroccans
     * 580,000 Portuguese
     * 350,000 Italians
     * 280,000 Spaniards
     * 200,000 Turks
     * 200,000 Tunisians
     * 120,000 Germans
     * 100,000 Britons
     * 100,000 Belgians
     * 100,000 Poles
     * 75,000 Vietnamese
     * 70,000 Senegalese
     * 70,000 Chinese
     * 60,000 Malians

   Please note that the French-born children of immigrant parents are
   usually considered "French" and not immigrants. Therefore are not
   included in the census as such, leading to the conclusion that the
   overall number of people of immigrant descent living in France is much
   higher than the official numbers given by the French national institute
   of statistics.

   Most demographic experts in France said the official census numbers
   should be multiplied by a factor of 2 in order to have a more realistic
   number of French people with foreign backgrounds, assuming that the
   birth rate in the country is around 2 children per couple.

   As a result, the number of French citizens with foreign origins is
   generally thought to be around 8-9 million , which ultimately
   represents 16% of the country's population. Despite the relatively high
   percentage, the proportion of immigrants in France is on par with other
   European nations such as the United Kingdom (15%) , Germany (20%) , the
   Netherlands (20%) , Sweden (15%) and Switzerland (19%) .

Languages

   The sole official language of France is French, according to Article 2
   of the Constitution since 1992. However, in metropolitan France several
   regional languages : High German varieties (namely Alsatian and
   Lorraine German), Occitan (incl. Gascon and Provençal), Oïl dialects
   (such as Picard and Poitevin-Saintongeais), Basque, Breton, Catalan,
   Corsican and Franco-Provençal. They are also occasionally understood
   and spoken, mostly by elderly people. Also several languages are spoken
   in the overseas departments and territories: Creole languages,
   Amerindian languages, Polynesian languages, New Caledonian languages,
   Comorian. However, the French government and state school system
   discouraged the use of any of those languages until recently. They are
   now taught at some schools. However, French remains the only official
   language in use by the government at the local and national level; this
   makes France unique among the Western European nations (excluding
   microstates) as the only country with just one officially recognized
   language. Some languages spoken by immigrants are also frequently
   heard, 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, Teo
   Cheow, and Mandarin), Vietnamese, and Khmer are the most frequently
   spoken.

   Despite foreign stereotypes, many French people can speak at least one
   foreign language (45% are able to participate in a conversation in a
   foreign language according to Eurobarometer 62.4 done in 2005),
   especially in cities and border regions such as the Pyrénées, Alsace,
   or the Alps. English (34%), Spanish (10%), German (7%) and Italian are
   spoken with various degrees of proficiency and many families living
   near the borders are perfectly bilingual.

Statistics

   At the 1999 census, INSEE sampled 380,000 adult people all across
   Metropolitan France, and asked them questions about their family
   situation. One of the questions was about the languages that their
   parents spoke with them before the age of 5. This is the first time
   serious statistics were computed about the proportion of mother tongues
   in France. The results were published in Enquête familiale, Insee,
   1999.

   Here is a list of the nine most prominent mother tongues in France
   based on Enquête familiale. It is important to read the notes at the
   Languages of France article in order to correctly interpret the
   numbers.
   Language Number of people % of adult population Notes
   1 French 39,360,000 86% The real figure for the whole population is
   closer to 90%, see notes.
   2 German and High German varieties ( Alsatian, Lorraine German, etc.)
   970,000 2.12% Alsatian (600,000; 1.44%), standard German (210,000;
   0.46%), Lorraine German (100,000; 0.22%)
   3 Arabic (essentially Maghreb Arabic) 940,000 2.05%
   4 Oc languages ( Languedocian, Gascon, Provençal, etc.) 610,000 1.33%
   Another 1,060,000 (2.32%) had some exposure.
   5 Portuguese 580,000 1.27%
   6 Oïl languages ( Picard, Gallo, Poitevin-Saintongeais, etc.) 570,000
   1.25% Another 850,000 (1.86%) had some exposure
   7 Italian (and dialects) 540,000 1.19%
   8 Spanish 485,000 1.06%
   9 Breton 280,000 0.61% Another 405,000 (0.87%) had some exposure
   10 About 400 other languages
   ( Polish, Berber languages, East Asian, Catalan, Franco-Provençal,
   Corsican, Basque, etc.) 2,350,000 5.12% Of whom English: 115,000 (0.25%
   of total adult population)
   Total 45,762,000 102% 46,680,000 including those 2% with French and
   another language as mother tongues who were counted twice

   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):
     * French: 42,100,000 (92%)
     * Oc languages: 1,670,000 (3.65%)
     * German and German dialects: 1,440,000 (3.15%)
     * Oïl languages: 1,420,000 (3.10%)
     * Arabic: 1,170,000 (2.55%)

Cities

   Metropolitan France's urban areas of more than 100,000 inhabitants
   Enlarge
   Metropolitan France's urban areas of more than 100,000 inhabitants

   The principal cities by population include (except Île-de-France
   cities):

          Aix-en-Provence, Ajaccio, Albi, Amiens, Angers, Angoulême,
          Annecy, Antibes, Arles, Avignon, Bastia, Beauvais, Belfort,
          Besançon, Béziers, Blois, Cahors, Bordeaux, Bourges, Brest,
          Brive-la-Gaillarde, Caen, Calais, Cannes, Carcassonne,
          Chalon-sur-Saône, Châlons-en-Champagne, Chambéry,
          Charleville-Mézières, Châteauroux, Cholet, Clermont-Ferrand,
          Colmar, Dijon, Dunkerque, Évreux, Fréjus, Grenoble, Hyères, La
          Rochelle, La Roche-sur-Yon, Le Havre, Le Mans, Lille, Limoges,
          Lorient, Lourdes, Lyon, Marseille, Metz, Montauban, Montpellier,
          Mulhouse, Nancy, Nantes, Narbonne, Nice, Nîmes, Niort, Orléans,
          Paris, Pau, Perpignan, Poitiers, Quimper, Reims, Rennes,
          Roubaix, Rouen, Saint-Brieuc, Saint-Étienne, Saint-Malo,
          Saint-Nazaire, Saint-Quentin, Strasbourg, Tarbes, Toulon,
          Toulouse, Tourcoing, Tours, Troyes, Valence, Vannes,
          Villeneuve-d'Ascq, and Villeurbanne.

Culture

     * Education in France
     * Sport in France
     * Académie française
     * French literature
     * French art
     * List of French people
     * Cuisine of France
     * Cinema of France
     * Music of France
     * Holidays in France
     * Social structure of France

Sport

   Popular sports in France include football (soccer), rugby union,
   basketball, and cycling. France hosted the 1998 FIFA World Cup, which
   the national football team won. The country will also host the 2007
   Rugby World Cup. The national stadium, Stade de France is where the
   final will be played. The stadium is also used for the national rugby
   union team's home matches, including the Six Nations Championship.

Marianne

   Marianne is a symbol of the French Republic. She is an allegorical
   figure of liberty and the Republic and first appeared at the time of
   the French Revolution. The earliest representations of Marianne are of
   a woman wearing a Phrygian cap. The origins of the name Marianne are
   unknown, but Marie-Anne was a very common first name in the 18th
   century. Anti-revolutionaries of the time derisively called her La
   Gueuse (the Commoner).

   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. Mediterranean seamen and convicts
   manning the galleys also wore a similar type of cap.

   Under the Third Republic, statues, and especially busts, of Marianne
   began to proliferate, particularly in town halls. She was represented
   in several different manners, depending on whether the aim was to
   emphasise 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. In recent times, famous French actresses are given the
   title of Marianne. Recent ones are Sophie Marceau, and Laetitia Casta.
   She also features on everyday articles such as postage stamps and
   coins.

Religion

   Bayonne Cathedral
   Enlarge
   Bayonne Cathedral

   Traditionally a predominantly Roman Catholic country, yet also with
   anticlerical leanings, France has since the 1970s been a very secular
   country. Freedom of religion is constitutionally a right, inspired by
   the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. 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. Tensions occasionally erupt
   about alleged discrimination against minorities; see Islam in France.

   The government does not maintain statistics as to the religion of its
   inhabitants. 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%. However, in a 2003 poll
   41% said that the existence of God was "excluded" or "unlikely". 33%
   declared that "atheist" described them rather or very well, and 51%
   said they were "Christian". 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. A Gallup poll established
   that 15% of the French population attend places of worship.

   In a more recent Eurostat "Eurobarometer" poll, in 2005, 34% of French
   citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 27%
   answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force"
   and 33% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or
   life force".

Public health

   France, as all EU countries, is under an EU directive to reduce sewage
   discharge to sensitive areas. As of the present France is only 40 per
   cent in compliance with this directive, placing it as one of the lowest
   achieving countries within the EU with regard to this wastewater
   treatment standard .

   As of the year 2003 there are approximately 120,000 inhabitants of
   France who are living with AIDS

Gallery

   The Mont Saint-Michel

   The Sacré Cœur

   The Eiffel Tower

   The Landes forest coast with its 100-mile beach.

   La Défense, one of the financial districts of Paris

   A ski track in Val Thorens is part of Les Trois Vallées, the largest
   ski resort on earth

   Millau Viaduct: the highest bridge on Earth, the tallest pillar being
   only slightly smaller than the Empire State Building

   The Calanques of Marseille, on the southern coast of the second-largest
   French city.

   Nice, on the French Riviera.

International rankings

     * Total GDP, 2005: 6th (out of 180) (World Bank data)
     * Total value of foreign trade ( imports and exports), 2002: 4th (out
       of 185)
     * Reporters Without Borders world-wide press freedom index 2005: Rank
       30 out of 167 countries
     * Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index 2005 - 18th
       of 159 countries

Neighbouring countries

   Flag of United Kingdom  United Kingdom
   Image:Template CanadianCityGeoLocation North.png
   English Channel North Sea Flag of Belgium  Belgium •  Flag of
   Luxembourg  Luxembourg
   Flag of Germany  Germany
   Bay of Biscay North Flag of Switzerland  Switzerland
   West    Flag of France  France     East
   South
   Flag of Spain  Spain •  Flag of Andorra  Andorra Mediterranean Sea
   Image:Template CanadianCityGeoLocation South.png
   Flag of Algeria  Algeria •  Flag of Tunisia  Tunisia Flag of Italy
   Italy
   Flag of Monaco  Monaco
   Ligurian Sea  Image:Template CanadianCityGeoLocation East.png   Flag of
   Italy  Italy
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France"
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