Gironde

Gironde (/ʒɪˈrɒnd/ zhi-ROND,[3] US usually /dʒɪˈ-/ ji-,[4][5] French: [ʒiʁɔ̃d] ⓘ; Occitan: Gironda, pronounced [dʒiˈɾundo]) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749.[6] The famous Bordeaux wine region is in Gironde. It has six arrondissements, making it one of the departments with the most arrondissements (Nord also has six, while Pas-de-Calais has the most of any department, with seven).

For other uses, see Gironde (disambiguation).
Gironde
Gironda (Occitan)
Department of France
Prefecture building in Bordeaux
Prefecture building in Bordeaux
Flag of Gironde
Flag
Coat of arms of Gironde
Coat of arms
Location of Gironde in France
Location of Gironde in France
Coordinates: 44°50′N 0°40′W
CountryFrance
RegionNouvelle-Aquitaine
PrefectureBordeaux
SubprefecturesArcachon
Blaye
Langon
Lesparre-Médoc
Libourne
Government
 • President of the Departmental CouncilJean-Luc Gleyze[1] (PS)
Area
1
 • Total10,725 km2 (4,141 sq mi)
Population
 (Jan. 2020)[2]
 • Total1,636,391
 • Rank6th
 • Density150/km2 (400/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeFR-33
Department number33
Arrondissements6
Cantons33
Communes535
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes estuaries and lakes, ponds and glaciers larger than 1 km2.

History

Gironde is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Guyenne and Gascony.

From 1793 to 1795, the department's name was changed to Bec-d'Ambès to avoid the association with the Girondist political party of the French Revolution.

In July 2022, Gironde was affected by large wildfires.[7]

Geography

Gironde is part of the current region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine and is surrounded by the departments of Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Dordogne and Charente-Maritime and the Atlantic Ocean on the west. With an area of 10,000 km2, Gironde is the largest department in metropolitan France, and the second-largest in entire France. Its size is larger than Lebanon or the province of Banten. If overseas departments are included, however, Gironde's land area is dwarfed by the 83,846 km2 of French Guiana.

Gironde is well known for the Côte d'Argent beach which is Europe's longest, attracting many surfers to Lacanau each year. It is also the birthplace of Jacques-Yves Cousteau who studied the sea and all forms of life in water.

The Great Dune of Pyla in Arcachon Bay near Bordeaux is the tallest sand dune in Europe.[8]

Demographics
Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1801502,723—    
1806522,371+0.77%
1821522,041−0.00%
1831554,225+0.60%
1841568,034+0.25%
1851614,387+0.79%
1861667,193+0.83%
1872705,149+0.50%
1881748,703+0.67%
1891793,528+0.58%
1901821,131+0.34%
1911829,095+0.10%
1921819,128−0.12%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1931852,768+0.40%
1936850,567−0.05%
1946858,381+0.09%
1954896,517+0.54%
1962935,448+0.53%
19681,009,390+1.28%
19751,061,480+0.72%
19821,127,546+0.87%
19901,213,499+0.92%
19991,287,532+0.66%
20061,393,758+1.14%
20111,463,662+0.98%
20161,566,679+1.37%
source:[9][10]

Principal towns

The most populous commune is Bordeaux, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 7 communes with more than 30,000 inhabitants:[6]

Commune Population (2019)
Bordeaux 260,958
Mérignac 72,197
Pessac 65,245
Talence 43,820
Villenave-d'Ornon 36,754
Saint-Médard-en-Jalles 31,808
Bègles 30,642

Politics

The President of the Departmental Council is Jean-Luc Gleyze of the Socialist Party.

Partyseats
• Socialist Party45
The Republicans12
• French Communist Party3
Miscellaneous Right1
MoDem1
Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition1

Current National Assembly Representatives
ConstituencyMember[11]Party
Gironde's 1st constituency Dominique David La République En Marche!
Gironde's 2nd constituency Catherine Fabre La République En Marche!
Gironde's 3rd constituency Loïc Prud'homme La France Insoumise
Gironde's 4th constituency Alain David Socialist Party
Gironde's 5th constituency Benoît Simian La République En Marche!
Gironde's 6th constituency Éric Poulliat La République En Marche!
Gironde's 7th constituency Bérangère Couillard La République En Marche!
Gironde's 8th constituency Sophie Panonacle La République En Marche!
Gironde's 9th constituency Sophie Mette MoDem
Gironde's 10th constituency Florent Boudié La République En Marche!
Gironde's 11th constituency Edwige Diaz National Rally
Gironde's 12th constituency Christelle Dubos La République En Marche!

Tourism

See also

References
  1. "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2020". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2022.
  3. "Gironde". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2020-08-01.
  4. "Gironde". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  5. "Gironde". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  6. Populations légales 2019: 33 Gironde, INSEE
  7. "Wildfires in Gironde, France, burn through 10,000 hectares". Sky News. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
  8. C.G. (14 August 2009). Les Adresses de Mathilde Seigner et Fabien Onteniente. Le Figaro Magazine. (in French)
  9. "Historique de la Gironde". Le SPLAF.
  10. "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  11. Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
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