ice (pronounced [nis]) (Provencal: Nica or Nissa; Italian: Nizza) is a city in southern France located on the Mediterranean coast, between Marseille and Genoa, with 933,080 inhabitants in the metropolitan area at the 1999 census. The city is a major tourist center and a leading resort on the French Riviera (Cote d'Azur).
Nice has a distinct culture due to its unique history. The local language Nicard is still spoken by a minority and there are strong Italian and Corsican influences as well as Provençal. Niçard is a Provençal dialect but strong Italian influence makes it less uninteligible with with others non-extinct Provençal dialects that they are among their.
Local food culture, which includes pissaladiere a pie with onions and anchovies paste; socca, a kind of pancake made from chickpea flour; bouillabaisse and fish soup; "Stockfish" (traditionally prounounced as "Stoquefiche" (French spelling) with special emphasis on the first "e"), farcis, vegetables stuffed with breadcrumbs; and salade nicoise, a tomato salad with green peppers of the "Corne" breed, baked eggs, tuna or anchovies, and olives.
In the recent decades Nice, as the rest of France, has received immigrants from other parts of the world, mainly Northern and Western Africa as well as southeastern Asia, which has further enriched the cultural life of the city. |
