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
Les Baux-de-Provence Les Baux-de-Provence Les Baux-de-Provence (; Occitan: "Lei Bauç de Provença") is a French commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the province of Provence in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southern France. It has a spectacular position in the Alpilles mountains, set atop a rocky outcrop that is crowned with a ruined castle overlooking the plains to the south. Its name refers to its site: in Provençal, a "bauç" is a rocky spur. The name bauxite (Aluminium ore) is derived from the village name when it was first discovered there by geologist Pierre Berthier in 1821. It has been named one