Bouches-du-Rhône (Occitan: Bocas de Ròse, lit. "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azurregion with more people living in it.
History
Bouches-du-Rhône is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was made with part of the old province of Provence and was divided in six districts: Tarascon, Apt, Aix, Marseille, Salon and Arles, with Aix as is capital.[4]
In 1800, with the creation of the arrondissements in France, the six districts were changed into three arrondissements: Marseille, Aix and Tarascon. The prefecture was moved from Aix to Marseille.[4]
After the Battle of Waterloo (18 June 1815), the department was occupied by the Austrianarmy from June 1815 to November 1818.
In 1817, the subprefecture of Tarascon was moved to Arles. The arrondissement of Istres was created in 1981.[4]
The Rhone River is the western border of the department, and Durance River is its northern border. South of Arles, the Rhone divides into the Grand Rhone (Large Rhone) and the Petit Rhone (Small Rhone). The area between the Grand Rhone and the Petit Rhone is a large wetland called the Camargue.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Marseille is 584.2 mm (23.0 in). October has the highest average precipitation with 94 mm (3.7 in) and July the lowest with 15.2 mm (0.6 in).
The average temperature in Marseille is 15 °C (59 °F). July is warmest, with an average temperature of 23.9 °C (75.0 °F). January is coolest, with an average temperature of 6.7 °C (44.1 °F).
Recently the French government decided to reorganise all the nation's cantons. This change went into effect in March 2015. These are the 29 reorganised cantons of the Bouches-du-Rhône department:[10]
People who live in the Bouches-du-Rhône department are known, in French, as Buccorhodaniens (men) or Buccorhodaniennes (women).[11][why?]
In 2014, Bouches-du-Rhône had 2,006,069 people living there, [2] or 394.3 people/km2. In the same year, the Marseille arrondissement had the highest population of the four arrondissements: 1,058,615.[8]
Population growth in Bouches-du-Rhône
These are the 10 communes with the highest population:[8]
↑"Département des Bouches-du-Rhône (13)". Géographie administrative et d'étude (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
↑"Département des Bouches-du-Rhône (13)". Comparateur de territoire (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved 18 July 2017.