| Pas-de-Calais | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coat of arms of the Pas-de-Calais department | |
| Location | |
 | |
| Administration | |
| Department number: | 62 |
| Region: | Nord-Pas-de-Calais |
| Prefecture: | Arras |
| Subprefectures: | Béthune |
| Arrondissements: | 7 |
| Cantons: | 77 |
| Communes: | 894 |
| President of the General Council: | Dominique Dupilet |
| Statistics | |
| Population | Ranked 5th |
| -1999 | 1,441,568 |
| Population density: | 216/km² |
| Land area¹: | 6671 km² |
| ¹ French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km². The term administration, as used in the context of Government, differs according to Jurisdiction. In the context of the political and geographic organization of France and many of its former colonies a department (département depaʁtǝmɑ̃ is an Administrative division France is divided into 26 regions or régions (in French of which 21 are in continental Metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, Nord-Pas de Calais (French Nord-Pas de Calais; Dutch Noord-Nauw van Kales) is one of the 26 regions of France. A prefecture ( préfecture) in France can refer to: the Chef-lieu de département, the town in which the administration of a ''département'' Arras (Atrecht is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Subprefectures (sous-préfectures are the administrative towns of arrondissements in France that do not contain the prefecture for its department. Béthune (Betun is a city and commune of northern France, sous-préfecture of the Pas-de-Calais département Boulogne-sur-Mer ( Bonen in Dutch is a City in Northern France. Calais (kaˈlɛ in English often kæˈleɪ traditional English pronunciation /ˈkælɨs/ Kales is a town in northern France. Lens is a commune in northern France, in the Pas-de-Calais département. Montreuil (often referred to as Montreuil-sur-Mer) is a sous-préfecture of northern France, in the département of Saint-Omer ( Sint-Omaars in Dutch) a town and commune of Artois in northern France, Sous-préfecture of the The 100 French departments are divided into 342 arrondissements, which may be translated into English as districts. The 7 arrondissements of the Pas-de-Calais department are Arrondissement of Arras, ( prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department The cantons of France are territorial subdivisions of the French Republic's 341 arrondissements and 100 departments. The following is a list of the 77 cantons (districts of the Pas-de-Calais department, in France, sorted by arrondissement: The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. The following is a list of the 894 communes of the Pas-de-Calais département, in France. In France, the President of the General Council (French Président du conseil général) is the locally-elected head of the General Council, the assembly As of January 1, 2008, 64473140 people live in the French Republic. To help compare Orders of magnitude of different geographical regions we list here areas between 1000 km2 and 10000 km2 An estuary is a semi-enclosed Coastal body of Water with one or more Rivers or Streams flowing into it and with a free connection to the open | |
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Pas-de-Calais is a department in northern France. In the context of the political and geographic organization of France and many of its former colonies a department (département depaʁtǝmɑ̃ is an Administrative division This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Its name is the French language equivalent of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people The Strait of Dover or Dover Strait ( French: Pas de Calais, pɑdə kalɛ "Strait of Calais " Dutch: Nauw van
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History
Inhabited since prehistoric times, Pas-de-Calais has been inhabited in turn by the Celtic Belgae, the Romans, the Germanic Franks and the Alemanni. The Belgae were a group of tribes living in northern Gaul in the 1st century BC and later also attested in Britain. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC The Germanic peoples are a historical group of Indo-European -speaking peoples originating in Northern Europe and identified by their use of the Germanic The Franks or Frankish people (Franci or gens Francorum) were West Germanic tribes first identified in the 3rd century as an Ethnic group The Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Main river ( Germany During the 4th and 5th centuries, the Roman practice of coopting Germanic tribes to provide military and defense services along the route from Boulogne to Cologne created a Germanic-Romance linguistic border in the region that persisted until the 8th century. Boulogne-sur-Mer ( Bonen in Dutch is a City in Northern France.
Saxon colonization into the region from the 5th to the 8th centuries likely extended the linguistic border somewhat south and west so that by the 9th century most inhabitants north of the line between Béthune and Berck spoke a dialect of Middle Dutch, while the inhabitants to the south spoke Picard, a variety of Romance dialects. The Saxons or Saxon people were a Confederation of Old Germanic tribes. Béthune (Betun is a city and commune of northern France, sous-préfecture of the Pas-de-Calais département Berck, sometimes referred to as Berck-sur-Mer, is a commune of northern France, in the department of Pas-de-Calais Middle Dutch is a collective name for a number of closely related West Germanic dialects (whose ancestor was Old Dutch) which were spoken and written between 1150 Picard is a Language closely related to French, and as such is one of the larger group of Romance languages. The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages, or Neolatin languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family comprising all
This linguistic border is still evident today in the place names (toponyms) and family names (patronyms) of the region. Toponymy refers to the scientific study of place-names ( toponyms) their origins meanings use and Typology. A patronym, is a component of a Personal name based on the name of one's father Beginning in the 9th century, the linguistic border began a steady move to north and the east, and by the end of the 15th century Romance dialects had totally displaced the Dutch. Dutch ( is a West Germanic language spoken by around 24 million people 22 million of which are from the Netherlands, Belgium and Suriname [1]
Pas-de-Calais is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an Events 51 - Nero, later to become Roman Emperor, is given the title Princeps iuventutis (head of the youth Year 1790 ( MDCCXC) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year It was created from parts of the former provinces of Calaisis, formerly English, Boulonnais, Ponthieu and Artois, this last formerly part of the Spanish empire. The Kingdom of France was organised into Provinces until March 4, 1790, when the establishment of the département The Pale of Calais ( French: Calaisis) is a historical region of France that was controlled by the Kingdom of England. Ponthieu is a former province of northern France. Its chief town is Abbeville. Artois (Artesië (adjective Artesian) is a former province of northern France. The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries
Some of the costliest battles of World War I were fought here. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The Vimy Memorial commemorates the Battle of Vimy Ridge and is Canada's most important memorial to its fallen soldiers. The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a Canadian National Historic Site and one of Canada 's most important overseas war memorials. The Battle of Vimy Ridge was a military offensive by the Canadian Corps against elements of the German Sixth Army in World War I. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page
Pas-de-Calais was also the target of Operation Fortitude during World War II, which was an Allied plan to deceive the Germans that the invasion of Europe at D-Day was to occur here, rather than in Normandy. Operation Fortitude was the codename for the Deception operations used by the Allied forces during World War II in connection with the Normandy landings World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including In general allies are people groups or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command Operation Overlord was the code name for the invasion of northwest Europe during World War II by Allied forces Normandy (Normandie Norman: Normaundie) is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. [1]
Geography
Pas-de-Calais is in the current region of Nord-Pas de Calais and is surrounded by the departments of Nord and Somme, the English Channel, and the North Sea. France is divided into 26 regions or régions (in French of which 21 are in continental Metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, Nord-Pas de Calais (French Nord-Pas de Calais; Dutch Noord-Nauw van Kales) is one of the 26 regions of France. Nord (North is a department in the far north of France. It is the country's most populated department The Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. The North Sea is a marginal, Epeiric sea of the Atlantic Ocean on the European Continental shelf.
Its principal towns are, on the coast, Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer, and in Artois, Lens, Liévin, Arras, and Saint-Omer. Calais (kaˈlɛ in English often kæˈleɪ traditional English pronunciation /ˈkælɨs/ Kales is a town in northern France. Boulogne-sur-Mer ( Bonen in Dutch is a City in Northern France. Lens is a commune in northern France, in the Pas-de-Calais département. Liévin is a town and commune in northern France, in the département of Pas-de-Calais. Arras (Atrecht is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Saint-Omer ( Sint-Omaars in Dutch) a town and commune of Artois in northern France, Sous-préfecture of the
The principal rivers are the following:
Economy
The economy of the department was long dependent on mining, primarily the coal mines. The Authie is a River in northern France whose 103 km course crosses the Departement of the Pas-de-Calais and Somme. The River Canche is one of the rivers that flow from the plateau of the southern Boulonnais and Picardy, into the English Channel. The River Ternoise is one of the small chalk streams that flow from the plateau of the southern Boulonnais and Picardy, via the Canche, As well as being the plural form of Liana, Liane is a female Given name, and may refer to one of the following Liane Bahler, German professional The Sensée is a River in northern France that crosses the Departement of Pas-de-Calais. The Scarpe is a River in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France, left tributary of the Scheldt. The Deûle is a River of northern France which is currently channeled for the main part of its course (from Lens to Lille) The Aa is an 89 km long river in northern France. Its source is near the village Bourthes. Mining is the extraction of valuable Minerals or other geological materials from the earth usually (but not always from an Ore body Coal mining is the extraction or removal of Coal from the Earth by Mining. However, since World War II, the economy has become more diversified. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called Pas-de-Calaisiens.
Pas-de-Calais is one of the most heavily populated departments of France, and yet it has no large cities. Calais has only about 80,000 inhabitants, followed closely by Boulogne-sur-Mer and Arras. Calais (kaˈlɛ in English often kæˈleɪ traditional English pronunciation /ˈkælɨs/ Kales is a town in northern France. Boulogne-sur-Mer ( Bonen in Dutch is a City in Northern France. Arras (Atrecht is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The remaining population is primarily concentrated along the border with the department of Nord in the mining district, where a string of small towns constitutes an urban area with a population of about 1. 2 million. The center and south of the department are more rural, but still quite heavily populated, with many villages and small towns.
Although the department saw some of the heaviest fighting of World War I, its population rebounded quickly after both world wars. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All However, many of the mining towns have seen dramatic decreases in population, some up to half of their population.
Culture
Although Pas-de-Calais is one of the most populous departments of France, it did not contain a university until 1992. Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar)
References
- ^ Hakim, Joy (1995). A History of Us: War, Peace and all that Jazz. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-509514-6.
See also
- Cantons of the Pas-de-Calais department
- Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department
- Arrondissements of the Pas-de-Calais department
External links
- (French) Prefecture website
- (French) General Council website
- (French) Official Tourist site
- (English) Pas-de-Calais Tourism Guide
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