Saorge

Saorge
A general view of the village
A general view of the village
Coat of arms of Saorge
Location of Saorge
Map
Saorge is located in France
Saorge
Saorge
Saorge is located in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Saorge
Saorge
Coordinates: 43°59′18″N 7°33′11″E / 43.9883°N 7.5531°E / 43.9883; 7.5531
CountryFrance
RegionProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
DepartmentAlpes-Maritimes
ArrondissementNice
CantonContes
IntercommunalityCA Riviera Française
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Brigitte Bresc[1]
Area
1
86.78 km2 (33.51 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
440
 • Density5.1/km2 (13/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
06132 /06540
Elevation319–2,680 m (1,047–8,793 ft)
(avg. 500 m or 1,600 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saorge (French: [saɔʁʒ]; Royasc: Sauèrge; Brigasc: Savurgë; standard Ligurian: Savurgiu; Italian: Saorgio; Occitan: Saorj) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association. Highway E74 which runs north from Menton, passes through Saorge on its way to the Col de Tende (Italian: Colle di Tenda) where it crosses into Italy.

The region belonged to the old County of Nice. Beginning in 1388 Saorge was part of Sardinia-Piedmont. In June 1793, Sardinia defeated the armies of the First French Republic in the First Battle of Saorgio. In the Second Battle of Saorgio in April 1794 the French wrested the town from the Piedmontese. The town was returned to Sardinia-Piedmont after the overthrow of Napoleon Bonaparte and finally ceded to France in 1860.

The local spoken regiolect is a form of the Royasc dialect.

  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 2 December 2020.
  2. ^ "Populations légales 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.