Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • A historical region and former province of southwest France. Settled originally by Basque peoples, it was conquered by the Romans and later by the Visigoths and Franks. A new wave of Basque invaders from south of the Pyrenees established the duchy of Vasconia in the sixth century AD. In 1052 Gascony passed to the duchy of Aquitaine, and after serving as a major battlefield during the Hundred Years' War, it finally became part of the French royal domain in 1607.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • proper noun A former region of France that was eliminated during the French revolution.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a region of southwestern France

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French Gascoigne, from Gasconia, from Wasconia, from Vasconia from Latin Vascones, plural of Vasco, from Ancient Greek ουασκωνους (ouaskōnous), as used by Strabo in his Geographica (23 CE), Book III. either from αἴξ ("goat") (literally “he-goat people”), or variant of Ausci (from which Aquitan, Occitan, and perhaps related to Euskara). Cognate to Basque (compare to Gascon).

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Examples

  • A Culinary Journey in Gascony: Recipes and Stories from My French Canal Boat by Kate Ratliffe

    French Word-A-Day: 2006

  • A Culinary Journey in Gascony: Recipes and Stories from My French Canal Boat by Kate Ratliffe

    French Word-A-Day: 2006

  • A Culinary Journey in Gascony: Recipes and Stories from My French Canal Boat by Kate Ratliffe

    la poule - French Word-A-Day 2006

  • Gascony is also home to Armagnac brandy and most notably, France’s Foie Gras production.

    A Visit to D’Artagnan 2009

  • Delouvrier grew up in Gascony, which is also in the south of France but far across the country, and his specialties tend toward game birds and foie gras, not tomatoes and olives.

    Men.Style.com: Latest Features and Articles 2010

  • Robert Kacher, whose industry leading French discoveries made the US market aware of such regions as Costieres de Nimes and Gascony, provided wines that were instrumental for the credibility of the upstart company.

    Brad Haskel: The Big Man Behind the Little Wine Company Brad Haskel 2011

  • Robert Kacher, whose industry leading French discoveries made the US market aware of such regions as Costieres de Nimes and Gascony, provided wines that were instrumental for the credibility of the upstart company.

    Brad Haskel: The Big Man Behind the Little Wine Company Brad Haskel 2011

  • Plus a porky logo to post on bloggers' Web sites, possible Charcutepalooza butchers' aprons, temporary tattoos and an out-of-the-blue offer of a grand-prize week at a cooking school in Gascony.

    Food bloggers' charcuterie project goes viral Bonnie S. Benwick 2011

  • Robert Kacher, whose industry leading French discoveries made the US market aware of such regions as Costieres de Nimes and Gascony, provided wines that were instrumental for the credibility of the upstart company.

    Brad Haskel: The Big Man Behind the Little Wine Company Brad Haskel 2011

  • Robert Kacher, whose industry leading French discoveries made the US market aware of such regions as Costieres de Nimes and Gascony, provided wines that were instrumental for the credibility of the upstart company.

    Brad Haskel: The Big Man Behind the Little Wine Company Brad Haskel 2011

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