Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
- Total January 1, 2011 - Density
4,916,069 inhabitants 156.6 inhabitants per km ²
- Total - Share in France:
31,400 km ² 4.9%
Provence- Alpes- Côte d' Azur [ pʀɔ ˌ ˌ vɑs alpkotdazy ː ʀ ] (abbreviated PACA ) is a region on the Mediterranean coast in southeastern France. It consists of the departments of Alpes- de -Haute -Provence, Alpes- Maritimes, Bouches -du -Rhône, Hautes -Alpes, Var and Vaucluse. The region has an area of 31,400 km ² and 4,916,069 inhabitants (as of 1 January 2011). Capital of the region is Marseille.
Topography
The region is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, Italy to the east and the valley or the estuarine delta of the Rhône River in the west. In the north it is bounded by the Rhône-Alpes region; these two regions share the French Alps half each among themselves.
Apart from the Alps divided the landscape of the region in the Provence and the coast, which is called the Cote d' Azur or the French Riviera.
Coat of arms
Description: The coat of arms is divided and the front in gold four red posts, behind it is divided up into gold and a red beflosster blue dolphin and down on black Three mountain with blue waves a red eagle with like- colored crown.
History
With the establishment of the Regions in France in 1960, the region Provence- Alpes- Côte d' Azur -Corse, which was renamed in 1970 after the separation of Corsica, Provence- Alpes- Côte d' Azur was created. In 1972, the region was granted the status of a Établissements public under the direction of a regional prefect. Due to the decentralization laws of 1982, the regions were given the status of Collectivités territorial ( regional ) as him until then only the municipalities and the department had possessed. In 1986, the regional councils were directly elected for the first time. Since then, the powers of the region against the central government in Paris was gradually extended.
Population
Demographics
Cities
The most densely populated cities in the Provence- Alpes- Côte d' Azur region are:
Political Structure
The Provence- Alpes- Côte d' Azur is divided into six departments:
Economy
In comparison with the European Union, the region achieved a gross domestic product index of 104.6 (EU-27 = 100, expressed in purchasing power standards) in 2006.