"Faubourg" is an ancient French term historically equivalent to "fore-town". The earliest form is forsbourg, derived from Latin forīs, 'out of', and Vulgar Latin 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, their outlying communities were frequently lower down. Many faubourgs were located outside the city walls, and "suburbs" were further away from this location.