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Pays de la Loire is one of the 26 regions of France
Régions of France

France is divided into 26 regions or r?gions , of which 21 are in continental metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, and four lie overseas....
. It is one of the regions created in the late 20th century to serve as a zone of influence for its capital, Nantes
Nantes

Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants , while its aire urbaine is the eighth with 804,833 inhabitants at a 2008 estimate....
, one of a handful so-called "balancing metropolises" (métropoles d'équilibre)¹. Other examples of "artificially created" regions include Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes

Rh?ne-Alpes is one of the 26 Regions of France of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rh?ne River and the Alps mountain range....
, which was created as the region for Lyon
Lyon

||-||}Lyon, also known as Lyons in English, is a city in east-central France. Its name is pronounced in French language and Franco-Proven?al language, and or in English language....
, and Midi-Pyrénées
Midi-Pyrénées

Midi-Pyr?n?es is the largest Regions of France of metropolitan France by area, larger than the Netherlands or Denmark.Midi-Pyr?n?es has no historical or geographical unity....
, which was created as the region for Toulouse
Toulouse

Toulouse is a commune of France in southwest France on the banks of the Garonne, half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea....
.

de la Loire is made up of the following historical provinces:

Consequently, the name of the region, chosen by the French central government, was not based on history, but purely on geographical references: Pays (i.e.






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Pays de la Loire is one of the 26 regions of France
Régions of France

France is divided into 26 regions or r?gions , of which 21 are in continental metropolitan France, one is the island of Corsica, and four lie overseas....
. It is one of the regions created in the late 20th century to serve as a zone of influence for its capital, Nantes
Nantes

Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants , while its aire urbaine is the eighth with 804,833 inhabitants at a 2008 estimate....
, one of a handful so-called "balancing metropolises" (métropoles d'équilibre)¹. Other examples of "artificially created" regions include Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes

Rh?ne-Alpes is one of the 26 Regions of France of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rh?ne River and the Alps mountain range....
, which was created as the region for Lyon
Lyon

||-||}Lyon, also known as Lyons in English, is a city in east-central France. Its name is pronounced in French language and Franco-Proven?al language, and or in English language....
, and Midi-Pyrénées
Midi-Pyrénées

Midi-Pyr?n?es is the largest Regions of France of metropolitan France by area, larger than the Netherlands or Denmark.Midi-Pyr?n?es has no historical or geographical unity....
, which was created as the region for Toulouse
Toulouse

Toulouse is a commune of France in southwest France on the banks of the Garonne, half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea....
.

Geography

Pays de la Loire is made up of the following historical provinces:
  • a part of Brittany
    Brittany

    Brittany is a former independent Celtic nations monarchy and duchy, now incorporated into France. It is also, more generally, the name of the cultural area whose limits correspond to the historic province and independent duchy....
    , with its old capital Nantes contained within the Loire-Atlantique
    Loire-Atlantique

    Loire-Atlantique is a departments of France on the west coast of France named after the Loire River and the Atlantic Ocean....
     department. This is only 20% of Brittany. The other 80% of Brittany make up the region of Bretagne
    Bretagne

    Bretagne is one of the 26 regions of France of France. It occupies a large peninsula in the northwest of the country, lying between the English Channel to the north and the Bay of Biscay to the south....
    .
  • Anjou
    Anjou

    Anjou is a former county , duchy and Provinces of France centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day d?partement in France of Maine-et-Loire....
    : is largely contained within the Maine-et-Loire
    Maine-et-Loire

    Maine-et-Loire is a departments of France in west-central France....
     department. The whole of the former province of Anjou is contained inside Pays de la Loire.
  • Maine
    Maine (province)

    Le Maine is one of the traditional Provinces of France of France . It corresponds to the old county of Maine, with its center, the city of Le Mans....
    : is now divided between the Mayenne and Sarthe
    Sarthe

    Sarthe is a France departments of France, named after the Sarthe River....
     departments. The whole of the former province of Maine is contained inside Pays de la Loire.
  • a part of Poitou
    Poitou

    Poitou was a Provinces of France of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers.The region of Poitou was called Taifals in the sixth century....
    : is contained within the Vendée
    Vendée

    The Vend?e [] is a departments of France in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vend?e is taken from the Vend?e River which runs through the south-eastern part of the department....
     department. Most of the old province of Poitou is inside the Poitou-Charentes
    Poitou-Charentes

    Poitou-Charentes is an Regions of France in central western France comprising four departments of France: Charente, Charente-Maritime, Deux-S?vres and Vienne....
     region.
  • a part of Perche
    Perche

    Perche is a former province of northern France extending over the d?partement in France of Orne, Eure, Eure-et-Loir and Sarthe....
    : is within the northeast of Sarthe
    Sarthe

    Sarthe is a France departments of France, named after the Sarthe River....
     department. The rest of Perche is inside the Basse-Normandie
    Basse-Normandie

    Basse-Normandie is an regions of France of France. It was created in 1956, when the Normandy region was divided into Basse-Normandie and Haute-Normandie ....
     and Centre
    Centre (France)

    Centre is one of the 26 regions of France of France, located towards the northwest of the actual centre of the country, around the Loire Valley....
     regions.
  • a small part of Touraine
    Touraine

    The Touraine is a provinces of France of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, the Touraine was divided between the d?partement in Frances of Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher and Indre....
    : southeast of Maine-et-Loire
    Maine-et-Loire

    Maine-et-Loire is a departments of France in west-central France....
     department. Most of the former province of Touraine is inside the Centre region.


Consequently, the name of the region, chosen by the French central government, was not based on history, but purely on geographical references: Pays (i.e. "lands") de la Loire (i.e. "of the Loire River
Loire River

The Loire is the longest river in France. With a length of , it drains an area of , which represents more than a fifth of France's land area....
"). However, the majority of the famous châteaux of the Loire Valley are located in the Centre region, and not inside Pays de la Loire, despite the confusing name. The Pays de la Loire present many great monuments as the castles of Angers
Angers

Angers is a city in the Maine-et-Loire Departments of France in northwestern France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
, Laval, Mayenne and the Nantes
Nantes

Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants , while its aire urbaine is the eighth with 804,833 inhabitants at a 2008 estimate....
 "Château des Ducs de Bretagne
Château des ducs de Bretagne

The Ch?teau des ducs de Bretagne is a large ch?teau located in the city of Nantes in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France of France; it served as the centre of the historical province of Brittany until its separation in 1941....
", the Royal Fontevraud Abbey
Fontevraud Abbey

Fontevraud Abbey is located in the village of Fontevraud-l'Abbaye, near Chinon, in Anjou, France. It was founded by the itinerant reforming preacher Robert of Arbrissel, who had just created a new order, the Order of Fontevrault....
 (the widest monastic ensemble in Europe), the old city of Le Mans
Le Mans

Le Mans is a commune in France in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine , it is now the pr?fecture of the Sarthe D?partement in France, and is furthermore the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans....
 but also many Natural Parks (as the Brière
Brière

Bri?re is the marsh area to the north of the Loire River estuary at its mouth in the Atlantic Ocean. The residents of Bri?re are called Bri?rons....
, the Marsh of Poitou
Poitou

Poitou was a Provinces of France of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers.The region of Poitou was called Taifals in the sixth century....
...).

Demography

Evolution of the population listed by departments:
YearPopulation of the departments
Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique

Loire-Atlantique is a departments of France on the west coast of France named after the Loire River and the Atlantic Ocean....
 
department		Maine-et-Loire
Maine-et-Loire

Maine-et-Loire is a departments of France in west-central France....
 
department		Mayenne
department		Sarthe
Sarthe

Sarthe is a France departments of France, named after the Sarthe River....
 
department		Vendée
Vendée

The Vend?e [] is a departments of France in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vend?e is taken from the Vend?e River which runs through the south-eastern part of the department....
 
department		Total Pays de la Loire
1801369.305375.544305.654388.143243.4261.682.072
1851535.664516.197374.566473.071383.7342.283.232
1901664.971515 431313.103422.699441.3112.357.515
1921649.691475.485  397.2922.174.150
1936659.428478.404251.348388.519389.2112.166.910
1946665.064   393.7872.224.163
1954733.575   395.6412.320.177
1962803.372535 122250.030443.019408.9282.440.471
1968861.452585.563252.762461.839421.2502.582.866
1975934.499629.849261.789490 385450.6412.767.163
1982995.498675.321271.784504.768483.0272.930.398
19901.050.539704.668277.748513.280508.9623.055.197
20051.208.761754.997297.854551.971587.1623.400.745


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