| Auvergne | |
 | |
Location  | |
Coat of arms and flag   | |
| State | France |
|---|---|
| Capital | Clermont-Ferrand |
| Surface | 26,013 km² |
| Inhabitants | 1.343.964 (2009) |
| Tourism site | |
| Institutional website | |
Auvergne (Auvergne, in Occitan Auvèrnhe / Auvèrnha) is a region of the France, in the Massif Central area.
To know
Auvergne takes its name from the Celts Arverni.
Geographical notes
The regional landscape varies greatly, continuously alternating valleys, mountains, pastures and forests. Much of the region extends over the Massif Central; almost a sixth of the total area of France.
The northern part of the region (the Allier) is a country of hills. The regional territory in the middle is cut in two always in a north-south direction by a plain, the Allier valley. To the west of the western plateaus dominate the Sioule valley and the left bank of the upper Dordogne, while to the east of the eastern plateaus are the lands of Forez, Margeride and Livradois.
In the Massif des Monts Dore rises the Puy de Sancy, the highest point in Auvergne (1886 m). In addition, there are about a dozen peaks over 1600 m.
The most important river flowing in Auvergne is the Allier while the largest natural lake in Auvergne is Lake Aydat,
Background
Historic Auvergne as it appeared in the 18th century roughly corresponds to the area that includes the departments of Cantal, Puy-de-Dome, and a small part of the department of Haute-Loire and the south of the Allier.
Spoken languages
There are two indigenous languages in the Auvergne region:
- Occitan or Oc is spoken in almost the entire region, usually in the form of Auvergne (or Vivaro-Alpine in Yssingeaux and Linguadocian in Aurillac).
- French language or Langue d'oïl, in a dialectal form spoken in the northern half of Borbonese (Allier department), towards Moulins.
Suggested readings
- CHAMBON Jean-Pierre, & OLIVIER Philippe (2000) "L'histoire linguistique de l'Auvergne et du Velay: notes pour une synthèse provisoire", Travaux de linguistique et de philologie 38: 83-153
- DAHMEN Wolfgang (1985) Étude de la situation dialectale dans le Center de la France: a basic exposé sur l'Atlas linguistique et ethnographique du Center ', Paris: CNRS
Territories and tourist destinations
It is made up of 4 departments:
- Allier —
- Cantal —
- Upper Loire (Haute-Loire) —
- Puy-de-Dôme —
Urban centers
- Clermont-Ferrand - Capital of the region and world center of the tire industry (Michelin), seat of university and bishopric. It is the homeland of Blaise Pascal, a distinguished mathematician and philosopher of the 17th century.
- Aubusson-d'Auvergne - Located in the Puy-de-Dôme department.
- Aurillac - Formerly the capital of Auvergne and today the capital of the Cantal department, it has a beautiful historic center that surrounds the abbey of St. Gerard founded in the century. X and entirely rebuilt after the destruction suffered in the mid-seventeenth century. Noteworthy is the "Black Madonna" of the church of Notre Dame de Neiges, a wooden statue from the 17th century. In a wing of the castle of St. Etienne is the "Museum of the Volcanoes" with an interesting collection of minerals and exhibition rooms on the phenomenon of volcanism.
- Besse - Located in the Cantal department.
- Le Mont-Dore - Renowned spa resort already known to the Romans and also a winter sports resort in a circle of mountains of the Mont Dore massif. A cable car takes you to the Salon du capucin (1286m) and from here, going up a path, you reach the Pic du Capucin (1463m) from which you can see the Dordogne and the Puys chain. Nearby, 4 km away is the Pied du Sancy from where a cable car takes you to the highest peak in central France, the Puy de Sancy (1885 m) from which the view sweeps over the Auvergne to the Dauphiné alps, 7 km away. find La Bourboule a popular hydro-mineral station on the Dordogne.
- Le Puy-en-Velay - Capital of the Haute-Loire department and episcopal seat, it is a picturesque town dominated by enormous volcanic peaks (the puys). It is renowned for its churches, pilgrimage destinations and for its embroidery crafts.
- Montluçon - Municipality located in the Allier department.
- Moulins - Capital of the Allier department, formerly a medieval village, it took its name from the numerous mills that once stood on the Allier river. It was the capital of the Duchy of Bourbon until the middle of the century. XVI. The Cathedral of Notre Dame in flamboyant Gothic style of 1468-1507 is of particular interest, with the venerated wooden statue of the "Black Madonna" inside and the two famous triptychs in the sacristy: one of the late fifteenth century considered a masterpiece of the French primitives, has in the center the Madonna enthroned among angels and on the doors the clients Peter II of Bourbon and Anna of Beaujeu: it is the work of an unknown artist called Maestro di Moulins. The Musée du Folklore is dedicated to Bourbonnais folklore with reconstruction of environments, costumes and iconographic collections.
- Saint-Flour - is an ancient fortified village of 7600 inhabitants located on a lava flow has the beautiful cathedral of St. Pierre et St. Flour built on black basalt stone of the Abbey of Cluny in the century. XI, and the castle of Pesteil with a tower of the fourteenth century.
- Saint-Nectaire - hydromineral station, it houses the beautiful Romanesque church of St. Nectare (XII century), partly rebuilt in the XIX century, of which the rich "Treasure" is also interesting.
- Salers - medieval town with ancient walls and remarkable buildings overlooking the Grande Place.
- Tournemire - Located in the Cantal department.
- Vichy - Located on the northern edge of Auvergne on the Allier River, it is a modern, world-famous spa town which, during the German occupation from 1940 to 1944, was the seat of the French collaborationist government of Marshal Petain. It is equipped with parks, avenues, hotels and the Grand Etablissement Thermal from 1903, the largest in Europe that uses bicarbonate, chlorinated and sulphate waters known since Roman times for the treatment of the digestive and circulatory systems.
Other destinations
- Puy de Dôme - Volcanic cone at an altitude of 1465 m sacred to the Romans, of whom are the remains of a temple to Mercury, and to the Gauls. The cathedral of Notre Dame is imposing, a church in a dominant position reachable by a monumental staircase, a destination since the Middle Ages for pilgrimages to the "Black Madonna".
How to get
By plane
Clermont-Ferrand Auvergne Airport is home to Air France's regional hub and in 2003 it passed the ceiling of one million passengers per year.
Other airports serving the region are: Aurillac Airport in the Cantal department and Montluçon Guéret Airport, the latter however is located in the Creuse department in the neighboring Limousin region.
By car
The completion of the construction of the north-south motorway axes (Paris-Montpellier-Spain) and east-west (Bordeaux-Lyon-Geneva, the A71, A75 and A89 motorways), intersect at Clermont-Ferrand, now making it possible to connect all the major national metropolises.
How to get around
By car
Road quality is excellent on all national and departmental networks.
On the train
Since January 1, 2002, the region operates the TER service under an agreement with the SNCF. Services in the suburbs of Clermont have been significantly increased (the rate is one train every 15 minutes in the first crown).
