Var, a S. E. department of France, in Provence, bordering on Basses-Alpes, Alpes-Maritimes, Bouches-du-Rhone, and the Mediterranean; area, 2,349 sq. m.; pop. in 1872, 293,757. The Hyeres islands lie off the coast, which is indented by numerous bays, including those of Fréjus, Hyeres, and Toulon. The surface is generally mountainous and rugged, particularly in the north and northeast, where it is traversed by offshoots of the Alps, and the only extensive tracts of level ground lie along the coast. The principal rivers are the Verdon and Argens, and there are several extensive lagoons along the coast. Coal, iron, and lead are found, but only the first is worked. About one third of the surface is covered with forests. The soil is not naturally fertile. The manufactures and productions consist chiefly of wine, fruit, silk, paper, leather, coarse woollens, perfumes, and olive oil. The coast fisheries are valuable, particularly those of tunny and anchovies. The department is divided into the arrondissements of Draguignan, Toulon, and Brignoles. Capital, Draguignan. - The river Var, from which the department takes its name, flows through the arrondissement of Grasse in the department of Alpes-Maritimes, detached from that of Var in 1861. It rises in the Maritime Alps, was formerly in part the boundary between France and Italy, and falls into the Mediterranean 5 m.

S. W. of Nice.