My apologoes to Francophones for the lack of diacritical marks.
A region encompassing most of southeastern
France.
Originally known as
Narbonensis, the area was seized by the
Roman Republic during the
Punic wars.
Narbonensis was later renamed
Province. This is the origin of the word "Province", referring to a major administrative division of an Empire directly under central rule.
Julius Caesar's
pretext for invading Gaul was that if he hadn't the
Germanic Tribes would have conquered it and threatened
Province.
Modern Provence is a
Region of France consisting of six
Departements. It is somewhat smaller than ancient Province, consisting only of its eastern half. Well known cities include
Marseilles,
Arles,
Avignon,
Toulon, and
Nice.
La Provence has its own
language,
Provencal.