Limousin

From the lighthouse

Limousin (French: [limuzɛ̃]; Occitan: Lemosin Occitan: [lemuˈzi]) 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-Vienne.

Situated mostly in the west side of south-central French Massif Central, Limousin had (in 2010) 742,770 inhabitants spread out on nearly , making it the least populated region of metropolitan France.

Forming part of the southwest of the country, Limousin is bordered by the regions of Centre-Val de Loire to the north, Auvergne to the east, Midi-Pyrénées to the south, Aquitaine to the southwest, and Poitou-Charentes to the west. Limousin is also part of the larger historical Occitania 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
Limoges
Panazol
Saint-Junien
Tulle
Ussel

History

Limousin is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its name derives from that of a Celtic tribe, the Lemovices, who had their capital at Saint-Denis-des-Murs and whose main sanctuary was recently found in Tintignac, 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.

Viscount Aimar V of Limoges (–) was a notable ruler of the region.

Language

Until the 1970s, Occitan 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 (Occitan: Lemosin) dialect
Auvergnat (Occitan: Auvernhat) dialect in the East/North-East
Languedocien (Occitan: Lengadocian) in the Southern fringe of Corrèze
in the North, the Crescent transition area between Occitan and French is sometimes considered as a separate (basically Occitan) dialect called Marchois (Occitan: Marchés).