Abstract
Marseille is the oldest city in France. It was founded in 599 BC. It ranks second after Paris among the largest cities in France. It is considered a cosmopolitan city, exposed to a wide range of influences, with a very diverse ethnic and social composition. In the presented text, an attempt is made to trace the conditions of the continuity of Marseille's functioning as a dynamic urban system, subject to multiply impacts, but invariably preserving the properties constituting its identity. It was also shown that urban naming referring to the Christian tradition is one of the elements stabilizing this system and determining its. The preservation of the names of the districts of Marseille, formed in the course of history, directly testifies to the constant attachment of a significant part of French society to the Christian heritage and the lack of reorientation in the choice of this tradition despite various historical turbulences. At the beginning of the current administrative division of the city lies the historical network of Roman Catholic parishes. It forms the basis of the material and nominating fabric of the city. The modern districts of Marseille developed on the basis of villages grown around parish churches and bearing names motivated by the calls of these churches. The names of the villages were then transferred to the districts. More than 30 districts of Marseille have names with religious meanings. These names are characterized by a special cultural charge and to a large extent determine the semantic continuity of the city. The uninterrupted functioning of urban names conditioned by Christian culture is a testimony to the respect for history and tradition by the majority of French people and the recognition of the value of cultural, religious and material heritage for the life of society.