Called Bregançoun in Provençal, the islet of Brégançon was located in the Ligurian and not Gallic occupation zone during Antiquity. Its name, therefore, comes from the Ligurian word brica, which means height and is found in the term brec used in the Alpes-Maritimes and the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence departments to designate a steep summit ending in a point. The Celtic word briga, frequent in the Hautes-Alpes department occupied by the Gauls, also means height, fortified mountain, stronghold. It gave the names Brigantion, Brigantium, Brigantione, as many common toponyms in ancient Gaul.