The Luberon ( or ;

Provençal Provençal may refer to: *Of Provence, a region of France * Provençal dialect, a dialect of the Occitan language, spoken in the southeast of France *''Provençal'', meaning the whole Occitan language *Franco-Provençal language, a distinct Roman ...

: ''Leberon'' or ''Leberoun'' ) is a

massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...

in central

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border ...

Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', A ...

, part of the French Prealps. It has a maximum

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...

of and an area of about . It is composed of three

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

s (from west to east): Lesser Luberon (''Petit Luberon''), Greater Luberon (''Grand Luberon'') and Eastern Luberon (''Luberon oriental''). The valleys north and south of them contain a number of towns and villages as well as agricultural land; the northern part is marked by the Calavon, while the southern part is characterised by the

Durance The Durance (; ''Durença'' in the Occitan classical norm or ''Durènço'' in the Mistralian norm) is a major river in Southeastern France. A left tributary of the Rhône, it is long. Its drainage basin is .acute accent on top of the "e"); some dictionaries justify that the two spellings are interchangeable. The total number of inhabitants varies greatly between winter and summer, due to a massive influx of tourists during the warm season. It is a favourite destination for French high society and British and American visitors because of the pleasant and picturesque towns and villages, comfortable way of life, agricultural wealth, historical and cultural associations, as well as hiking trails.

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic ex ...

notably lived in Cave Bonelly, a vineyard near to

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; ca, Rosselló ; oc, Rosselhon ) is a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of th ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. In the last two decades the Luberon has become known in the English-speaking world especially through a series of books by British author Peter Mayle chronicling his life as an

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

settled in the Luberon village of Ménerbes. These are titled '' A Year in Provence'', ''Toujours Provence'' and ''Encore Provence''. Another of Mayle's books, a novel set in the Luberon, was made into a film called '' A Good Year'' (2006) directed by

Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is a British film director and producer. Directing, among others, science fiction films, his work is known for its atmospheric and highly concentrated visual style. Scott has received many accolades th ...

, starring Russell Crowe and filmed in the region.

Flora and fauna

Luberon is particularly rich in biological diversity. There are known to be around 1,500 species of plants, accounting for 30% of the flora and fauna in France, 17,000 species and sub-species of insects with almost 2,300 species of Lepidoptera, or nearly 40% of species living in France, 341 species and subspecies of vertebrate wildlife, 135 species of birds and 21 species of bats or 70% of species present in France. Among the 1,500 different species of plants, there are 700 species and sub-species of higher plants and 200 species of lichens. Rich

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

deposits are also preserved here, documenting for example ancient species related to

songbird A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds ( Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 50 ...

s, as well as an ancestral

pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before ...

. Image:Snake (Elaphe scalaris) by JM Rosier.JPG, Ladder snake Image:Habichtsadler.jpg,

Bonelli's eagle The Bonelli's eagle (''Aquila fasciata'') is a large bird of prey. The common name of the bird commemorates the Italian ornithologist and collector Franco Andrea Bonelli. Bonelli is credited with gathering the type specimen, most likely from an ...

Image:Circaetus gallicus 01.JPG, Short-toed snake eagle, the largest bird of prey of the Luberon Image:Dectique à front blanc.jpg, Southern Wartbiter

Nuclear facilities

The '' Force de frappe'' or French strategic nuclear arsenal used to be located on the Plateau d'Albion before being dismantled in the late 1980s. Now, the underground site where the missile controls were located is a public multidisciplinary laboratory of the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, the Low Noise Underground Laboratory (LSBB) of Rustrel, Pays d'Apt.Low Noise Underground Laboratory (LSBB) of Rustrel, Pays d'Apt

Communes in the Parc naturel régional du Luberon

In Vaucluse

* Ansouis *

Apt Apt. is an abbreviation for apartment. Apt may also refer to: Places * Apt Cathedral, a former cathedral, and national monument of France, in the town of Apt in Provence * Apt, Vaucluse, a commune of the Vaucluse département of France * A ...

, small town near the eastern end of the Luberon valley * La Bastide-des-Jourdans * La Bastidonne * Beaumettes * Beaumont-de-Pertuis * Bonnieux *

Buoux Buoux ju̟ːksis a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Located on the north side of the Luberon, the town is known for the high cliffs that surround it, making it a popular venue f ...

* Cabrières-d'Aigues * Cadenet *

Caseneuve Caseneuve (; oc, Canòva) is a Communes of France, commune in the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in southeastern France. Geography The river Calavon forms the commune's sou ...

* Cavaillon, small town at the western entrance to the Luberon valley * Cheval-Blanc * Cucuron * Gargas * Gordes * Goult * Grambois * Joucas *

Lacoste Lacoste S.A. is a French company, founded in 1933 by tennis player René Lacoste, and entrepreneur Mangkha. It sells clothing, footwear, sportswear, eyewear, leather goods, perfume, towels and watches. The company can be recognised by ...

* Lagarde-d'Apt * Lauris * Lioux * Lourmarin * Maubec * Ménerbes * Mérindol * Mirabeau * Murs * Oppède * Pertuis * Peypin-d'Aigues * Puget * Puyvert * Robion *

* Rustrel * Saignon * Saint-Martin-de-Castillon *

Saint-Martin-de-la-Brasque Saint-Martin-de-la-Brasque (; oc, Sant Martin de la Brasca) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primari ...

* Saint-Pantaléon * Saint-Saturnin-lès-Apt * Sannes * Taillades * La Tour-d'Aigues * Vaugines * Viens * Villars *

Villelaure Villelaure (; oc, Vilalaura) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. History The village takes its name from the Roman-era settlement of ''Villa Laura'' which was at the same loca ...

* Vitrolles-en-Luberon

In Alpes-de-Haute-Provence

Aubenas-les-Alpes Aubenas-les-Alpes is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of south-eastern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Albascecois'' or ''Albascecoises''. The commune has been aw ...

La Brillanne La Brillanne (; oc, La Brilhana) is a commune in the department of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence in southeastern France. Population Its inhabitants are referred to as ''Brillannais''. See also *Communes of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence departmen ...

* Céreste * Dauphin * Forcalquier * Limans *

Lurs Lurs () are an Iranian people living in the mountains of western Iran. The four Luri branches are the Bakhtiari, Mamasani, Kohgiluyeh and Lur proper, who are principally linked by the Luri language. Lorestan Province is named after the Lurs ...

* Manosque * Montfuron * Montjustin * Niozelles * Oppedette * Pierrerue * Pierrevert * Reillanne *

Revest-des-Brousses Revest-des-Brousses is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. Population See also * Luberon *Communes of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department The following is a list of the 198 communes of the Alpes- ...

* Saint-Maime * Saint-Martin-les-Eaux *

Saint-Michel-l'Observatoire Saint-Michel-l'Observatoire (; oc, Sant Miquèu de l'Observatòri) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. It was the death place of 18th-century botanist Jean-Paul de Rome d'Ardène and Taos Amrouche, the ...

* Sainte-Tulle * Vachères * Villemus *

Villeneuve Villeneuve, LaVilleneuve or deVilleneuve may refer to: People * Villeneuve (surname) Places Australia * Villeneuve, Queensland, a town in the Somerset Region Canada * Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, a Formula One racetrack in Montréal * Villeneuv ...

* Volx

Golden triangle of Luberon

* Bonnieux, village on the border between the Little and Big Luberon * Gordes, facing the Luberon, this village is considered the top of the Golden Triangle (the base being made by the Little Luberon mountains) * Goult, perched on a hill in the middle of the valley of the Luberon *

and the ancient castle of the uncle of "le Marquis de Sade" * Ménerbes * Oppède with its historic section perched on the hillside Oppéde-le-Vieux *

, like Goult, perched on a hill within the Luberon valley

Southern Luberon

* Lourmarin, village on the border between Little and Big Luberon * Cucuron * Pavillon de Galon

References

External links

Discover the Luberon on Notreprovence.fr in EnglishAerial photos LuberonPhoto essay - Experience the Luberon
{{coord, 43, 47, 46, N, 5, 13, 26, E, region:FR-U_type:mountain, display=title Geography of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Geography of Vaucluse Biosphere reserves of France Global Geoparks Network members Geoparks in France Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region articles needing translation from French Wikipedia