faubourg

thumb|Turgot map of Paris (1734–1736), showing part of the Faubourg Saint-Michel and Faubourg Saint-Jacques "Faubourg" () is an ancient French term historically equivalent to "fore-town" (now often termed suburb or ). The earliest form is , derived from Latin , 'out of', and Vulgar Latin (originally Germanic) , '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 outside the city walls, and "suburbs" were further away from this location (, "below"; , "city").

Faubourgs are sometimes considered the predecessor of European suburbs, into which they sometimes evolved in the 1950s and 1960s, while others underwent further urbanisation. Although early suburbs still conserved some characteristics related to faubourgs (such as the back alleys with doors, little break margins for houses), later suburbs underwent major changes in their construction, primarily in terms of residential density.