What Is the Absolute Location of France?
The absolute location of France is between 42 degrees and 52 degrees north latitude and between 5 degrees west longitude and 8 degrees east longitude. The coordinates for the capital city of Paris are 48 degrees, 51 minutes north latitude and 2 degrees, 21 minutes east longitude, according to WorldAtlas. Absolute location gives the exact location of a particular place and is often described in terms of latitude and longitude.
Lille, one of the northern cities in France, is located at 50 degrees, 38 minutes north latitude and 3 degrees, 3 minutes east longitude. The westernmost city of Brest is located at 48 degrees, 23 minutes north latitude and 4 degrees, 29 minutes west longitude. France, located on the European continent, is mostly in the Eastern hemisphere, but a small part of the country is in the Western hemisphere. The prime meridian, which is zero degrees longitude, cuts through the western part of France. The entire nation, however, is in the Northern hemisphere. Another way to describe location, relative location, involves a location’s physical relationship to other places. For instance, France is located north of Spain and the Mediterranean Sea. It lies east of the Bay of Biscay and south of the English Channel, Belgium and Luxembourg. It is located west of Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
