LANGUEDOC ROUSSILLON - Geography and history
Neighbouring Spain and the plain of the Aquitaine on one side, and the valley of the Rhone and Provence on the other, Languedoc-Roussillon comprises five départements (Aude, Gard, Hérault, Lozère and Pyrénées-Orientales) and has a total area of around 27 000 km2.
Whereas, four of its départements belong to the Mediterranean coastal plain, the fifth, Lozère, because of its relief and its economy is more turned towards the Massif Central.
A region of uplands and coastal plains, Languedoc-Roussillon is often compared to an amphitheatre opening out towards the south. The geological history of the region has shaped it into three basic types of terrain: mountainous areas of granites and schists, causses and garrigues with limestone strata which can reach depths of over 1 000 metres, and the coastal plain formed from relatively recent sediments. This relief has produced a number of small, mainly coastal, rivers whose flows are regulated by the climate, which is basically Mediterranean: rain falls mainly in the spring and autumn either side of the summer, which tends to be dry.
The areas under vines or simple forms of vegetation down near sea level give way higher up to Aleppo pine (and occasionally cork oak) followed by chestnut trees. Above 1 000 metres the main forms of plant life are beech groves and spruce trees.
Imbalances between urban and rural areas
The lie of the land and its road and rail links, the disappearance of traditional industries and the growth in employment in the services sector are all factors which divide the region into two quite separate areas:
- the developing coastal and Rhône valley area;
- the declining hinterland.
The unifying factor for the first of these two areas is its topography, which has allowed the urban centres to extend their sphere of influence and continues to foster a rise in the population which has been unprecedented over the past few decades. This area contains the three major regional centres - Montpellier, Nîmes and Perpignan - as well as a number of medium-sized towns such as Béziers and Narbonne.
The hinterland is basically made up of mountainous or piedmont regions. It covers most of Pyrénées-Orientales, Lozère, three-quarters of Aude, and the northwest of Hérault and Gard.
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