Everything about Pas-de-calais totally explained
Pas-de-Calais is a
department in northern
France. Its name is the
French language equivalent of the
Strait of Dover, which it borders.
History
Inhabited since prehistoric times, Pas-de-Calais has been inhabited in turn by the Celtic
Belgae, the
Romans, the
Germanic Franks and the
Alemanni. During the 4th and 5th centuries, the Roman practice of coopting Germanic tribes to provide military and defense services along the route from
Boulogne to
Cologne created a Germanic-Romance linguistic border in the region that persisted until the 8th century.
Saxon colonization into the region from the 5th to the 8th centuries likely extended the linguistic border somewhat south and west so that by the 9th century most inhabitants north of the line between
Béthune and
Berck spoke a dialect of
Middle Dutch, while the inhabitants to the south spoke
Picard, a variety of
Romance dialects.
This linguistic border is still evident today in the place names (
toponyms) and family names (
patronyms) of the region. Beginning in the 9th century, the linguistic border began a steady move to north and the east, and by the end of the 15th century Romance dialects had totally displaced the
Dutch.
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Pas-de-Calais is one of the original 83 departments created during the
French Revolution on
March 4,
1790. It was created from parts of the
former provinces of
Calaisis, formerly English,
Boulonnais,
Ponthieu and
Artois, this last formerly part of the
Spanish empire.
Some of the costliest battles of
World War I were fought here. The
Vimy Memorial commemorates the
Battle of Vimy Ridge and is
Canada's most important memorial to its fallen soldiers.
Pas-de-Calais was also the target of
Operation Fortitude during
World War II, which was an
Allied plan to deceive
the Germans that the
invasion of Europe at D-Day was to occur here, rather than in
Normandy.
Geography
Pas-de-Calais is in the current
region of
Nord-Pas de Calais and is surrounded by the departments of
Nord and
Somme, the
English Channel, and the
North Sea.
Its principal towns are, on the coast,
Calais and
Boulogne-sur-Mer, and in Artois,
Lens,
Liévin,
Arras, and
Saint-Omer.
The principal rivers are the following:
Economy
The economy of the department was long dependent on
mining, primarily the
coal mines. However, since
World War II, the economy has become more diversified.
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called
Pas-de-Calaisiens.
Pas-de-Calais is one of the most heavily populated departments of France, and yet it has no large cities.
Calais has only about 80,000 inhabitants, followed closely by
Boulogne-sur-Mer and
Arras. The remaining population is primarily concentrated along the border with the department of Nord in the mining district, where a string of small towns constitutes an urban area with a population of about 1.2 million. The center and south of the department are more rural, but still quite heavily populated, with many villages and small towns.
Although the department saw some of the heaviest fighting of
World War I, its population rebounded quickly after both world wars. However, many of the mining towns have seen dramatic decreases in population, some up to half of their population.
Culture
Although Pas-de-Calais is one of the most populous departments of France, it didn't contain a university until
1992.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Pas-de-calais'.
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