Faubourg

Faubourg is an ancient French term approximating "suburb" (now generally termed banlieue). The earliest form is Forsbourg, derived from Latin foris, 'out of', and Vulgar Latin (originally Germanic) burgum, 'town' or 'fortress'. Traditionally, this name was given to an agglomeration forming around a throughway leading outwards from a city gate, and usually took the name of the same thoroughfare within the city. As cities were often located atop hills (for defensive purposes), their outlying communities were frequently lower down. Many faubourgs were located below their towns, and the term "suburbs" is derived from this tendency (sub = below; urbs = city).

Faubourgs are often considered the predecessor of European suburbs, into which they evolved generally in the 1950s and 60s. Although early suburbs still conserved some characteristics related to faubourgs (such as the back alleys with doors, little break margins for houses, etc.), later suburbs underwent major changes in their construction, primarily in terms of residential density.

Beside many French cities, the places faubourgs can still be found outside Europe include the province of Quebec, in Canada and the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. The cities of Quebec and Montreal contain examples, although Montreal has far greater divergences in terms of "banlieue", which lead to similarities of many Ontarian and American suburbs.