Corsica Corsica Corsica (; ; "Corsica" in Corsican and Italian, pronounced and respectively) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is located southeast of the French mainland and west of the Italian Peninsula, with the nearest land mass being the Italian island of Sardinia to the immediate south. A single chain of mountains makes up two-thirds of the island. While being part of Metropolitan France, Corsica is also designated as a territorial collectivity ("collectivité territoriale") by law. As a territorial collectivity, Corsica enjoys a greater degree of autonomy than other French regions;
Ancient Corsica the name derives from the Phoenician term "Korsai", meaning 'wooded'. Settlement of Corsica is attested as far back as the 8th millennium BC. The original inhabitants of Corsica were hunter-gatherers from :Liguria, who walked to the island over a land bridge created by the modern islands of Elba and Capraia. Around 6000 BC, they were replaced by the Neolithic Cardium pottery culture. As a result of the Würm glaciation the sea level was about 100 metres lower and the island extended closer to the mainland. Until around 5000 BC, it was connected to Sardinia. In the south of the island,