Alsace (French: Alsace, pronounced [alzas]; Alsatian and German: Elsass, pre-1996 German: Elsaß; Latin: Alsatia) is the smallest of the 26 regions of France, and one of the most densely populated. Alsace is located on France's eastern border and on the west bank of the upper Rhine adjacent to Germany and Switzerland. The capital and largest city is Strasbourg. That town being the seat of dozens of international organizations and bodies, Alsace is politically one of the most important regions in the European Union.
The name "Alsace" derives from the Germanic Ell-sass, meaning "Seated on the Ill", a river in Alsace. The region was part of the Holy Roman Empire and changed hands between France and Germany several times between the 17th and 20th century. In the 17th century, Alsace was gradually annexed under kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV of France and made one of the provinces of France. It is frequently mentioned in conjunction with Lorraine, because German possession of parts of these two régions (as the province Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen, 1871-1918) was contested in the 19th and 20th century.
Although Alsace has been a German dialect speaking region, today Alsatians speak French, the official language of the country they have been a part of since 1945. About 39% of the local adult population but probably less than 10% of the children are still fluent in the Alsatian language. The place names used in this article are in French. See this list for the original German place names.
Source: CIA Factbook, Wikipedia
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