Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (; , ; ), or simply Aix (; medieval Occitan "Aics"), is a city-commune in the south of France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the department of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix numbers approximately 143,000. Its inhabitants are called "Aixois" or, less commonly, "Aquisextains". Aix ("Aquae Sextiae") was founded in 123 BC by the Roman consul Sextius Calvinus, who gave his name to its springs, following the destruction of the nearby Gallic oppidum at Entremont. In 102 BC its
Provence Alps and Prealps Provence Alps and Prealps The Provence Alps and Prealps ("Alpes et Préalpes de Provence" in French) are a mountain range in the south-western part of the Alps, located in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (France). Provence Alps and Prealps encompass the south-western area of the French Prealps. The "Provence" () is a historical region nowadays part of the administrative "région" of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Administratively the range belongs to the French departments of Vaucluse, Alpes-Maritimes and Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. The western slopes of the range are drained by the Rhone river through the Durance and other tributaries while its south-eastern part is drained by the Var