Câte

Côte is a French noun that commonly translates as coast or shoreline, and it can also refer to a hillside or slope in some regional usages. In toponymy, the word is used to denote coastal zones or sloping terrain, and it appears in many place names across the Francophone world.

In geography and place names, Côte appears as a defining element in several well-known terms. Côte d'Azur refers to the French Riviera along the Mediterranean. Côte d'Or designates a department in eastern France and, more broadly, a region associated with golden-hued landscapes. Other examples include Côte d’Opale in the north, along the Opal Coast, and Côte Vermeille near the Pyrenées, while Côte des Basques marks a coastline near Biarritz. In Switzerland and parts of France, La Côte designates cross-border or lake-adjacent regions, such as the district along Lake Geneva in the canton of Vaud.

Côte d'Ivoire is the official French name of the country commonly known in English as the Ivory Coast. Located in West Africa, it uses French as its official language, with Yamoussoukro as the political capital and Abidjan as its largest city. The term Côte in this context literally signifies the country’s coastal geography.

Beyond geography, Côte is also used as a surname in French-speaking communities. As a toponym and surname, it appears in various contexts and does not have a single defining meaning beyond its association with coastlines or slopes. The word remains a common element in place names and cultural references within the francophone world.