France is located in Western Europe, although several overseas territories are also considered by the French to be part of France. France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and North Sea, and from the Rhine River to the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by eight Western European nations, including Spain, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco, Andorra. France is also linked to the United Kingdom by means of the Channel Tunnel, which passes underneath the English Channel. With over 70 million tourists visiting each year, France is also a popular international tourist destination.
The French lanscape is very diverse, ranging from coastal plains in the north and west to mountain ranges in the south-east (Alps) and the south-west (Pyrenees). The highest mountain in western Europe, Mont Blanc (4,810 metres), is located in the French Alps. France also contains several other elevated regions including the Massif Central, the Jura, the Vosges, and the Ardennes which are quite rocky and forested. France also has extensive river systems such as the Seine, the Loire, the Rhône, and the Garonne. France is divided into 26 administrative regions, 21 of which are located in "metropolitan France" (the country of France as opposed to its external territories).
The name France originates from the Franks, a Germanic tribe that occupied the region after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. France has since prehistoric times been a crossroads of trade, migrations, and invasions. Indigenous European cultures including Celtic (Gallic and Breton), Latin, and Germanic (Franks, Visigoths, Burgundians, Vikings) have blended over the centuries and, since the 19th century, France has absorbed migrants from Belgian, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Romanian, Armenian, Arabic, Berber, African, Chinese and Eastern Europe Jewish backgrounds. France is currently the third most populous country of Europe, behind Russia and Germany.
The official language of France is French, but several other languages (including Alsatian, Basque, Breton, Catalan, Corsican, Dutch, Franco-Provençal dialects, Gascon, Lorraine German dialect, Norman, Occitan, and some Oïl dialects such as Picard) are still spoken by the older inhabitants of some regions. Despite common stereotypes, many French speak a second language, typically English, German, and Italian.