Political Geography of the Languedoc

The word Languedoc is derived from the name of the traditional language of southern France, the "Langue d'oc" or as it is also called, Occitan.  From the 13th century the name applied to the entire area in which the Occitan language was spoken.  A large part of this area was the territory of the Counts of Toulouse.  This area, much larger than the present day Languedoc, is still home to a distinctive civilisation, very different from that of the north of the country.

The region is roughly the same as the eastern part of the former Province of Languedoc along with the former province of Roussillon - which was demoted to become the Département of Pyrénées-Orientales within the new Languedoc-Roussillon Region.

The Région encompasses the Départements of the

• Aude département  11
• Gard département  30
• Hérault département  34
• Lozère département  48
• Pyrénées-Orientales département  66

The Capital of the Region is Montpellier.