Morbihan - Definition and Overview

Morbihan
Details
Information
Number	56
Region	Bretagne
Prefecture	Vannes
Subprefecture	Lorient Pontivy
Population  - Total (1999)  - Density	Ranked 32nd 643,873 94 /km²
Area	6,823 km²
Cantons	42
Communes	261
President of the general council	Joseph-François Kergueris
Location

Morbihan is a département in the northwest of France named after the Morbihan (small sea in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.

History

Morbihan was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Bretagne.

Geography

Morbihan is part of the current region of Bretagne and is surrounded by the departments of Finistère, Côte-d'Armor, Ille-et-Vilaine, and Loire-Atlantique, and the Atlantic Ocean on the southwest.

In the Gulf of Morbihan are five inhabited islands:

• Meaban, on which there is an ornithological preserve
• Houat
• Hoëdic
• Belle-Ile
• Groix

Culture

The Breton language is an important issue, with many advocating bilingual education.

Tourism

The megalithic alignments of Carnac are situated in Morbihan.

Miscellaneous topics

List of the communes of the Morbihan département

External links

• Prefecture website (http://www.morbihan.pref.gouv.fr/) (in French)
• Conseil Général website (http://www.cg56.fr/) (in French)
• http://www.morbihan.com/

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