Limousin (; oc, Lemosin ) is a former administrative region of southwest-central

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. On 1 January 2016, it became part of the new administrative region of

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...

. It comprised three departments:

Corrèze Corrèze (; oc, Corresa) is a department in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region ...

Creuse Creuse (; oc, Cruesa or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the ea ...

, and Haute-Vienne. Situated mostly in the west side of south-central French

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,0 ...

, Limousin had (in 2010) 742,770 inhabitants spread out on nearly , making it the least populated region of

metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

. Forming part of the southwest of the country, Limousin is bordered by the regions of Centre-Val de Loire to the north,

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; oc, label= Occitan, Auvèrnhe or ) is a former administrative region in central France, comprising the four departments of Allier, Puy-de-Dôme, Cantal and Haute-Loire. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region Au ...

to the east,

Midi-Pyrénées Midi-Pyrénées (; oc, Miègjorn-Pirenèus or ; es, Mediodía-Pirineos) is a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Occitania. It was the largest region of Metropolitan France by ar ...

to the south,

Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...

to the southwest, and

Poitou-Charentes Poitou-Charentes (; oc, Peitau-Charantas; Poitevin-Saintongese: ) is a former administrative region on the southwest coast of France. It is part of the new region Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It comprises four departments: Charente, Charente-Maritime, D ...

to the west. Limousin is also part of the larger historical

Occitania Occitania ( oc, Occitània , , or ) is the historical region in Western and Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes still used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasse ...

region.

Population

The population of Limousin is aging and, until 1999, was declining. The department of Creuse has the oldest population of any in France. Between 1999 and 2004 the population of Limousin increased slightly, reversing a decline for the first time in decades.

Major communities

* Brive-la-Gaillarde *

Guéret Guéret (; Occitan: ''Garait'') is a commune and the prefecture of the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography Guéret is a light industrial town, the largest in the department, with a big woodland a ...

* Limoges *

Panazol Panazol (; oc, Panasòu) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in west-central France. It is an eastern suburb of Limoges. Panazol is the third largest town in the department (by population), after Limoges ...

Saint-Junien Saint-Junien (; oc, Sent Junian) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in west-central France. Its sister city is Jumet, Belgium. History The history of Saint-Junien began in AD 500, when an ascetic of ...

Tulle Tulle (; ) is a commune in central France. It is the third-largest town in the former region of Limousin and is the capital of the department of Corrèze, in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Tulle is also the episcopal see of the Roman Cat ...

* Ussel

History

Limousin is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its name derives from that of a Celtic tribe, the

Lemovices The Lemovīcēs (Gaulish: *''Lēmouīcēs'', 'those who vanquish by the elm') were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the modern Limousin region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Name They are mentioned as ''Lemovices'' by Caesar (mid-1st c. ...

, who had their capital at Saint-Denis-des-Murs and whose main sanctuary was recently found in

Tintignac Tintignac is a hamlet near Naves in the Corrèze region of France. It is primarily known for the archaeological remains of a sanctuary where Gallic and Gallo-Roman artefacts have been found, including seven carnyces (war trumpets) and ornamente ...

, a site which became a major site for Celtic studies thanks to unique objects which were found – such as the carnyces, unique in the whole Celtic world.Official website of Tintignac-Naves
/ref> Viscount

Aimar V of Limoges Aimar V,(c. 1135 – c. 1199), was a Viscount of Limoges, a nobleman in the Duchy of Aquitaine. Life Born in Limoges around 1135, his family named him Boson, he later adopted the traditional name for the previous viscounts, Aimar. He was orpha ...

( – ) was a notable ruler of the region.

Language

Until the 1970s,

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language, spoken in parts o ...

was the primary language of rural areas. There remain several different Occitan dialects in use in Limousin, although their use is rapidly declining. These are: *

Limousin Limousin (; oc, Lemosin ) is a former administrative region of southwest-central France. On 1 January 2016, it became part of the new administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It comprised three departments: Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienn ...

( oc, Lemosin) dialect *

Auvergnat or (endonym: ) is a northern dialect of Occitan spoken in central and southern France, in particular in the former administrative region of Auvergne. Currently, research shows that there is not really a true Auvergnat dialect but rather a va ...

( oc, Auvernhat) dialect in the East/North-East *

Languedocien Languedocien (French name, ), Languedocian or Lengadocian (), is an Occitan dialect spoken in rural parts of southern France such as Languedoc, Rouergue, Quercy, Agenais and Southern Périgord. It is sometimes also called Languedocien-Guyennai ...

( oc, Lengadocian) in the Southern fringe of

* in the North, the Crescent transition area between Occitan and French is sometimes considered as a separate (basically Occitan) dialect called Marchois ( oc, Marchés).

Transportation

* The word

limousine A limousine ( or ), or limo () for short, is a large, chauffeur-driven luxury vehicle with a partition between the driver compartment and the passenger compartment. A very long wheelbase luxury sedan (with more than four doors) driven by a pr ...

is derived from the name of the region. A particular type of carriage hood or roof physically resembled the raised hood of the cloak worn by the shepherds there.

Notable residents

From Corrèze

From Creuse

From Haute-Vienne

Footnotes

External links

Limousin : the “château d'eau”
- Official French website (in English) *
Limousin regional council website
with a presentation video in English. *
Art in the Limousin region
*
History and Geography (University of Limoges)
{{Authority control Massif Central History of Nouvelle-Aquitaine History of Corrèze History of Dordogne History of Haute-Vienne Former regions of France NUTS 2 statistical regions of the European Union 1956 establishments in France States and territories established in 1956 2015 disestablishments in France States and territories disestablished in 2015 France geography articles needing translation from French Wikipedia