The Graian Alps (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

:: ''Alpes Graiæ'' ; ; ) are a mountain range in the western part of the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

, and the name of an Antic Rome province.

Etymology

The name ''Graie'' comes from the ''

Graioceli The Graioceli were a small Gallic tribe dwelling in the valley of Maurienne, in the modern region of Savoie, during the Iron Age. Name They are mentioned as ''Graioceli'' (var. ''graiocaeli, gaioceli'') by Caesar (mid-1st c. BC)., s.v. ''Graioc ...

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

tribe, which dwelled in the area surrounding the

Mont Cenis Mont Cenis (; , ) is a massif in Savoie (France) (with an elevation of at Pointe de Ronce and a pass at an elevation of ), which forms the limit between the Cottian and Graian Alps. Etymology The term "Mont Cenis" could be derived from '' ...

pass and the

Viù Viù is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northwest of Turin. Viù's central square used to feature a wooden statue of Pinocchio, which is 6.53 meters tall and weighs ab ...

valley. Other sources claim that the name comes from the Celtic ''Graig'' meaning "rock" or "stone", literally the Rocky Mountains. The name of the Antic Rome province comes from the local celtic god Graius.

Geography

The Graian Alps are located in France (

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...

), Italy (

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

and the

Aosta Valley The Aosta Valley ( ; ; ; or ), officially the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley, is a mountainous Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region in northwestern Italy. It is bordered by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Fr ...

), and Switzerland (western

Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...

). The French side of the Graian Alps is drained by the river

Isère Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.

(

Tarentaise valley The Tarentaise Valley (, ; ) is a valley of the Isère (river), Isère River in the heart of the French Alps, located in the Savoy region of France. The valley is named for the ancient town of ''Darantasia'', the capital of the pre-Roman Centron ...

) and its tributary Arc (

Maurienne Maurienne (; ; ) is one of the provinces of Savoy, corresponding to the arrondissement of Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne in France. It is also the original name of the capital of the province, now Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne. Location The Maurienne val ...

valley), and by the

Arve The Arve () is a river in France ('' département'' of Haute-Savoie), and Switzerland (canton of Geneva). A left tributary of the Rhône, it is long, of which 9 km in Switzerland. Its catchment area is , of which 80 km2 in Switzerlan ...

. The Italian side is drained by the rivers

Dora Riparia The Dora Riparia (; ; or ''Doire''; ) is an alpine river, a left-bank tributary of the Po. It is long (of which 5 km is in France), with a drainage basin. It originates in the Cottian Alps, close to the Col de Montgenèvre in France, wh ...

Dora Baltea The Dora Baltea () or Doire Baltée () is a river in the Aosta Valley and in Piedmont, in northwestern Italy. It is a left-hand tributary of the Po and is about long. Name The river's Latin name was ''Duria maior'', ''Duria Baltica'' or ''Duri ...

Orco The Orco (, that is lit. ''Water of gold''; ) is an Italian river. It originates in the Piedmontese slopes of Gran Paradiso and after about reaches the Po river near Chivasso, in the Metropolitan City of Turin. Its drainage basin is home to th ...

and

Stura di Lanzo Stura di Lanzo () is a long river in north-western Italy (Piedmont), in the Metropolitan City of Turin. It is formed from several tributaries near Lanzo Torinese. It flows into the river Po in Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and ...

, tributaries of the Po. The Graian Alps can also be divided into the following four groups: * the Mont Blanc group (north of the Little St Bernard Pass), including the Beaufortain

Massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...

* the Central group (the watershed between the Little St Bernard Pass and the Col du Mont Cenis) * the Western or French group, * and the Eastern or Italian group, including the Gran Paradiso Massif.

Peaks

The main peaks of the Graian Alps are:

Mont Blanc group

Central group

It also includes Roche Michel at 3429 m.

Eastern group

Western group

Passes

The main passes of the Graian Alps are shown in the table below. The group in which the pass is located is indicated with "MB" for Mont Blanc group, "C" for Central group, "E" for Eastern group, and "W" for Western group.

Nature conservation

The western group contains the

Vanoise National Park Vanoise National Park () is a French national park between the Tarentaise and Maurienne valleys in the French Alps, containing the Vanoise massif. It was created in 1963 as the first national park in France. Vanoise National Park is in the '' ...

, established in 1972 and covering the eastern group contains the

Gran Paradiso National Park Gran Paradiso National Park (; ) is an Italian national park in the Graian Alps, between the Aosta Valley and Piedmont regions. The park is named after Gran Paradiso mountain, which is located in the park; it is contiguous with the French Vanois ...

, the oldest Italian national park. Also on the Italian side is located the ''Parco Regionale del Monte Avic'', a nature park of 5,747 ha established by Regione

Valle d'Aosta The Aosta Valley ( ; ; ; or ), officially the Autonomous Region of Aosta Valley, is a mountainous Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region in northwestern Italy. It is bordered by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Fr ...

.''Parco del Mont Avic'', home page o
www.montavic.info
(accessed on April 2012)

Maps

* Italian official cartography (''

Istituto Geografico Militare The ''Istituto Geografico Militare'' (IGM), or Military Geographic Institute, is an Italian public organization, dependent on the Italian Army general staff (''Stato Maggiore dell'Esercito''). It is the national mapping agency for Italy.

'' - IGM); on-line version
www.pcn.minambiente.it
* French official cartography (''

Institut Géographique National An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

'' - IGN); on-line version:
www.geoportail.fr
* Swiss official cartography ('' Swiss Federal Office of Topography'' - Swisstopo); on-line version:
map.geo.admin.ch

References

External links

Ascents in Gran Paradiso group
- Czech and English

- English {{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Alps Mountain ranges of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Mountain ranges of Italy Mountain ranges of Switzerland Mountain ranges of Piedmont Western Alps