Winds of Provence
Encyclopedia
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
along the Mediterranean from the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
to the mouth of the Rhone
Rhône
Rhone can refer to:* Rhone, one of the major rivers of Europe, running through Switzerland and France* Rhône Glacier, the source of the Rhone River and one of the primary contributors to Lake Geneva in the far eastern end of the canton of Valais in Switzerland...
River, are an important feature of Provençal life, and each one has a traditional local name, in the Provençal language.
The most famous Provençal winds are:
- The MistralMistral (wind)The mistral is a strong, cold and usually dry regional wind in France, coming from the north or northwest, which accelerates when it passes through the valleys of the Rhone and the Durance Rivers to the coast of the Mediterranean around the Camargue region. It affects the northeast of the plain...
, a cold dry north or northwest wind, which blows down through the Rhone Valley to the Mediterranean, and can reach speeds of ninety kilometers an hour.
- The LevantLevant (wind)The levant is an easterly wind that blows in the western Mediterranean Sea and southern France, an example of mountain-gap wind. In Roussillon it is called "llevant" and in Corsica "levante"...
, a very humid east wind, which brings moisture from the eastern Mediterranean.
- The TramontaneTramontaneTramontane is a classical name for a northern wind. The exact form of the name and precise direction varies from country to country. The word came to English from Italian tramontana, which developed from Latin trānsmontānus , "beyond the mountains/across the mountains", referring to the alps in...
, a strong, cold and dry north wind, similar to the Mistral, which blows from the Massif CentralMassif CentralThe Massif Central is an elevated region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaux....
mountains toward the Mediterannean to the west of the Rhone.
The Marin
Marin (wind)
The Marin is a warm, moist wind in the Gulf of Lion of France, blowing from the southeast or south-southeast onto the coast of Languedoc and Roussillon. It brings rain to this region which it has picked up crossing the Mediterranean, and also can bring coastal fog...
, a strong, wet and cloudy south wind, which blows in from the Gulf of Lion
Gulf of Lion
The Gulf of Lion is a wide embayment of the Mediterranean coastline of Languedoc-Roussillon and Provence in France, reaching from the border with Catalonia in the west to Toulon.The chief...
.
The Sirocco
Sirocco
Sirocco, scirocco, , jugo or, rarely, siroc is a Mediterranean wind that comes from the Sahara and reaches hurricane speeds in North Africa and Southern Europe. It is known in North Africa by the Arabic word qibli or ghibli Sirocco, scirocco, , jugo or, rarely, siroc is a Mediterranean wind...
, a southeast wind coming from the Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
desert in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, can reach hurricane force, and brings either reddish dust or heavy rains.
The Provençal names for the winds are very similar to the names in the Catalan language
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
:
- Tramontane (Pr.) = Tramuntana (Catalan)
- Levant (Pr.) = Llevant (Catalan)
- Mistral (Pr.) = Mestral (Catalan)
Winds in Provençal culture
- The winds of Provence, particularly the Mistral, have long had an influence on the architecture of ProvenceArchitecture of ProvenceThe Architecture of Provence includes a rich collection of monuments from the Roman Empire; Cistercian monasteries from the Romanesque Period, medieval palaces and churches; fortifications from the time of Louis XIV, as well as numerous hilltop villages and fine churches...
. The masMas (Provencal Farmhouse)A mas is a traditional farmhouse in the Provence region of France as well as in Catalonia, where is also named masia or masía ....
traditionally faces southeast, with its back to the Mistral, and many Provençal churches have open iron grill bell towers, which allow the Mistral wind to pass through.
- The traditional Provençal Christmas creche often features one santonSantonSanton may be a reference to:* Davide Santon, an Italian footballer* Santon , a fictional Beast Wars character* Santon , a small figurine cast in terracotta or a similar material...
, or Provençal character, holding his hat and wearing a cape billowing from the Mistral.
- The Mistral also features in Provençal literatureProvençal literatureOccitan literature — still sometimes called Provençal literature — is a body of texts written in Occitan in what is nowadays the South of France. It originated in the poetry of the 11th- and 12th-century troubadours, and inspired the rise of vernacular literature throughout medieval...
, and in the more recent novels of Marcel PagnolMarcel PagnolMarcel Pagnol was a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker. In 1946, he became the first filmmaker elected to the Académie Française.-Biography:...
.
Names of the Winds of Provence (by points of the compass)
Traditional compass roses in Provence (see illustration, which shows Midi, or the South, at the top) have the names of the winds by the points of the compass.- TramontaneTramontaneTramontane is a classical name for a northern wind. The exact form of the name and precise direction varies from country to country. The word came to English from Italian tramontana, which developed from Latin trānsmontānus , "beyond the mountains/across the mountains", referring to the alps in...
(North wind) - Vent droit
- Montagnére
- Brise Noire
- GregaleGregaleThe Gregale is a Mediterranean wind that can occur during times when a low pressure area moves through the area to the south of Malta and causes a strong, cool, northeasterly wind to affect the island...
(Northeast wind) - Lombarde
- Levant-Grégale
- Auro-Bruno
- LevantLevant (wind)The levant is an easterly wind that blows in the western Mediterranean Sea and southern France, an example of mountain-gap wind. In Roussillon it is called "llevant" and in Corsica "levante"...
(East wind) - Auro-rosso
- Vent blanc
- LevecheLevecheLebeche is the Spanish name for a warm southwest wind in parts of coastal Mediterranean Spain, either a foehn wind or a hot southerly wind in advance of a low pressure area moving from the Sahara Desert...
- Autan (Southeast wind)
- SiroccoSiroccoSirocco, scirocco, , jugo or, rarely, siroc is a Mediterranean wind that comes from the Sahara and reaches hurricane speeds in North Africa and Southern Europe. It is known in North Africa by the Arabic word qibli or ghibli Sirocco, scirocco, , jugo or, rarely, siroc is a Mediterranean wind...
- Simoun
- Embat
- MarinMarin (wind)The Marin is a warm, moist wind in the Gulf of Lion of France, blowing from the southeast or south-southeast onto the coast of Languedoc and Roussillon. It brings rain to this region which it has picked up crossing the Mediterranean, and also can bring coastal fog...
(South wind) - Vent de bas
- Chili
- Vent du Large
- Labech (Southwest wind)
- Libeccio
- Garbi
- Cierco
- Ponent (West wind)
- Traverse
- MaestroMaestroMaestro is a title of extreme respect given to a master musician. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera. This is associated with the ubiquitous use of Italian vocabulary for classical music terms...
- Galerne
- MistralMistral (wind)The mistral is a strong, cold and usually dry regional wind in France, coming from the north or northwest, which accelerates when it passes through the valleys of the Rhone and the Durance Rivers to the coast of the Mediterranean around the Camargue region. It affects the northeast of the plain...
(Northwest wind) - Traverse-haute
- Brise
- Auro-Drecho