Brest is a port city in the Finistère (Breton: Penn-ar-Bed) département in Brittany. Its history, at least since the 17th century been linked to the sea. Brest continues to be an important harbour and the military port and every four years it hosts the international festival of the sea, boats and sailors. It is the third largest metropolitan area in Brittany (with a population of 300,300 in total), ranking third behind only Nantes (Breton: Naoned) and Rennes (Breton: Roazhon). Brest is also an important university town with 23,000 students.