is a ''
Département '' of
France , located in
Brittany (''Bretagne'' in
French ) in the northwest corner of
France .
Ille-et-Vilaine was one of the original 83 ''départements'' created during the
French Revolution on
March 4 ,
1790 . It was created from part of the
Province of
Brittany .
Ille-et-Vilaine is a part of the current ''région'' of
Bretagne and is bordered by the ''départements'' of
Manche ,
Mayenne ,
Maine-et-Loire ,
Loire-Atlantique ,
Morbihan , and
Côtes-d'Armor , as well as the
English Channel to the north.
Major rivers running through it are the
Ille , the
Vilaine , the
Rance and the
Couesnon .
The population has grown over the last few decades and was estimated at 903,400 in January 2003.
Gallo is a historic minority language spoken in eastern Brittany. Gallo and
Breton are both studied at the University of Rennes.
