 The Arras plain lies on a large chalk plateau bordered on the north by the Marqueffles fault, on the southwest by the Artois and Ternois hills, and on the south by the slopes of Beaufort-Blavincourt.On the east it is connected to the Scarpe valley.Established during the Iron Age by the Gauls, the town of Arras was first known as "Nemetocenna", which is believed to have originated from the Celtic word "nemeton", meaning 'sacred space'.