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).
Gironde
Gironda (Occitan) | |
|---|---|
 Prefecture building in Bordeaux | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Location of Gironde in France | |
| Coordinates: 44°50′N 0°40′W / 44.833°N 0.667°W | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine |
| Prefecture | Bordeaux |
| Subprefectures | Arcachon Blaye Langon Lesparre-Médoc Libourne |
| Government | |
| • President of the Departmental Council | Jean-Luc Gleyze[1] (PS) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 9,975 km2 (3,851 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | |
| • Total | 1,654,970 |
| • Rank | 6th |
| • Density | 170/km2 (430/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | FR-33 |
| Department number | 33 |
| Arrondissements | 6 |
| Cantons | 33 |
| Communes | 535 |
| ^1 French Land Register data, which excludes estuaries and lakes, ponds and glaciers larger than 1 km2. | |
History
editGironde 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
editGironde 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
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Principal towns
editThe 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
editThe President of the Departmental Council is Jean-Luc Gleyze of the Socialist Party.
| Party | seats | |
|---|---|---|
| • | Socialist Party | 45 |
| The Republicans | 12 | |
| • | French Communist Party | 3 |
| Miscellaneous Right | 1 | |
| MoDem | 1 | |
| Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition | 1 | |
Current National Assembly Representatives
editTourism
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Château de la Brède, birthplace of Montesquieu -
The Gironde estuary seen from the citadel of Blaye -
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See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
- ^ "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ "Gironde". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2020-08-01.
- ^ "Gironde". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "Gironde". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ a b Populations légales 2019: 33 Gironde, INSEE
- ^ "Wildfires in Gironde, France, burn through 10,000 hectares". Sky News. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
- ^ C.G. (14 August 2009). Les Adresses de Mathilde Seigner et Fabien Onteniente. Le Figaro Magazine. (in French)
- ^ "Historique de la Gironde". Le SPLAF.
- ^ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
- ^ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
External links
edit- (in French) Departmental Council website
- (in French) Prefecture website
- (in English) Tourism Office website