I Don't Understand Departments And Regions in France?

Question

How does it work? Please can you explain. Use examples if possible.

Answer 1

This division was made after the French revolution.

The territory is divided in 22 regions.

Each of these region then was divided in departements. The size of the departement was set by looking how far can you go by horse.

It was supposed to be one day from one end to the other.

Each region has a name like Alpes-Provence- Cote d'Azur (aka PACA) or Alsace or Normandie.

In each of the regions, the departements have a name (very often based on rivers or mountains) and a number based on their alphabetic order ex: 01 is Ain, 02 is Aisne, 03: Allier...., 13 is Bouches du Rhone, 42: Loire.

These numbers are also part of the postal code (2 first digits) and the car licence # (last 2 digits).

After WWI and WWII there have been some changes but only in the East that was German, then French...

Answer 2

My department is VAR 83

Answer 3

France is divided into 26 administrative regions of which 21 are on the continental part of metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, and four are overseas regions (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, and Réunion) .

The regions are divided into departments which are numbered (mainly alphabetically). This number is used in postal codes and vehicle number plates amongst others. There are a total of 100 departments. (Urban departments are further subdivided into arrondissements)

Each regions and departments has a local assembly as well as an executive.

There is an interactive map of the Regions here: http://www.france-pub.com/maps/regional-...

Answer 4

Geographically Regions are kind of like states and Departments like counties.