Metropolitan France (French: France métropolitaine or la Métropole), also known as European France,[1][a] is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European regions of France is used in everyday life in France but has no administrative meaning, with the exception of only Metropolitan France being part of the Schengen Area.[2] Indeed, the overseas regions have exactly the same administrative status as the metropolitan regions. Metropolitan France comprises mainland France and Corsica, as well as nearby French islands in the Atlantic Ocean, the English Channel (French: la Manche), and the Mediterranean Sea. Its borders have undergone significant changes over the centuries, particularly in the east, but have remained unaltered since 1947.
In contrast, overseas France (France d'outre-mer) is the collective name for all the French departments and territories outside Europe. Metropolitan and overseas France together form the French Republic. Metropolitan France accounts for 82.0% of the land territory, 3.3% of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and 95.9% of the population of the French Republic. Some small parts of France (e.g. Cerdanya) are a part of the Iberian Peninsula.
In overseas France, a person from metropolitan France is often called a métro, short for métropolitain.
- ^ (French: Territoire européen de la France) "Ministère des Affaires Étrangères- Les étrangers titulaires d'un passeport ordinaire dispensés de l'obligation de visa - 1. Le territoire européen de la France" (in French). Archived from the original on 2017-02-25. Retrieved 2018-05-15.
- ^ https://france-visas.gouv.fr/en/france-in-the-schengen-area [bare URL]
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