Bordeaux is a municipality French of 246 586 inhabitants, the capital of the Gironde department and the new Aquitaine region. The metropolitan area is the sixth most populous in the country and counts 1 178 225 inhabitants. The city is crossed by the Garonne, it is part of Gascony and is known all over the world for the homonymous red wine, the Bordeaux. In 2007 UNESCO has defined the historical centre of the city as a World heritage site. The name derives from the ancient Roman city of Burdigala, at the edge of Gaul.