France Factsheet

Demography

Population: 68 million (Metropolitan : 66 million)
Population Density (inhabitant/km2): 105 (national average), 122 (Metropolitan average), 19 000 (Paris - highest), 2 (Guyane - lowest)
Largest Cities (pop. in million) by urban area: Paris (12.5m), Lyon (2.3m), Marseille (1.7m), Toulouse (1.3m), Bordeaux (1.2m), Lille (1.14m), Nice (1m)
Home Ownership: 63%
Urban Population: 81.8%
Ethnic Composition: Caucasians (80%), Arabs (10%), Black Africans (7%), East Asians (1.7%), South Asians (0.4%).
Official Language: French (+ 77 non-official regional languages)
Major Religions: Roman Catholicism, Agnosticism, Atheism

Geography

Area: 674,843 km² (Metropolitan : 551,695 km²)
Coastline (Metropolitan) : 3,427 km
Highest Peak: Mont Blanc : (4,808m)
Lowest Elevation: Rhone River delta (-2m)

Modern regions and departments of France

Note that the regions of France have been modified in 2015, but at Eupedia we think that this was a mistake and that the regions used between 1982 and 2015 were more representative of the historical and cultural differences within France than the new regions. Therefore we keep using the old region for the purpose of this travel guide.

Traditional provinces of France (until 1790)

Economy

Monetary unit: Euro (€, EUR)
Fiscal Year: 1 January - 31 December
Main Industries: machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics; textiles, food processing; tourism
Main Exports: machinery and transportation equipment, aircraft, plastics, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, iron and steel, beverages
Main Imports: machinery and equipment, vehicles, crude oil, aircraft, plastics, chemicals
Main Trading Partners: Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, UK, USA

Government

Type of Government: Republic
Parliamentary System : bicameral Parliament (National Assembly and Senate)
Administrative Division : 26 regions, regions, 100 departments, 36,682 municipalities