Dordogne

**Dordogne** () is a department in the southwest of France. It is named after the Dordogne river that runs through the department.

The department is in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It is between the valley of the Loire river and the Pyrenees. Its prefecture (capital) is Périgueux.

## History

Dordogne was formed during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790 with parts of the old province of Périgord. It was divided into nine districts: Belvès, Bergerac, Excideuil, Montignac, Montpon, Nontron, Périgueux, Ribérac and Sarlat.

Bergerac, Périgueux and Sarlat-la-Canéda were alternatively the capital of the department but later it was decided that only Périgueux would be the capital.

## Geography

Dordogne is part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It is the third largest department of Metropolitan France, after Gironde and Landes. It has an area of .

The department is bordered by seven departments in two regions:
- Nouvelle-Aquitaine region
    - Charente
    - Charente-Maritime
    - Corrèze
    - Gironde
    - Lot-et-Garonne
    - Haute-Vienne
- Occitanie region
    - Lot

The main river in the department is the Dordogne that gives its name to the department. It runs from east to west through the department. Other rivers are the Isle and the Vézère, both tributaries of the Dordogne.

The highest point in the department is the southwestern summit of the _Forêt de Vieillecour_ (), in northwestern Massif Central near the border with the Haute-Vienne department, with an altitude of . The lowest point is in the valley of the Dordogne river and is  high.

## Administration

Dordogne is part of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It is managed by the _Departamental Council of Dordogne_ in Périgueux.

### Administrative divisions

There are 4 _arrondissements_ (districts), 25 _cantons_ and 520 _communes_ (municipalities) in Dordogne.

|INSEE code !! Arrondissement !! Capital !! Population <small>(2014)</small> !! width=70px | Area <small>(km²)</small> !! Density <small>(Inh./km²)</small> !! _Communes_|||||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|241|Bergerac|Bergerac|111,875|2,182.0||133|
|242|Nontron|Nontron|40,508|1,621.0||100|
|243|Périgueux|Périgueux|189,301|3,336.5||146|
|244|Sarlat-la-Canéda|Sarlat-la-Canéda|74,666|1,920.6||141|

The following is a list of the 25 cantons of the Dordogne department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:

1. Bergerac-1 <small>(2401)</small>
1. Bergerac-2 <small>(2402)</small>
1. Brantôme <small>(2403)</small>
1. Coulounieix-Chamiers <small>(2404)</small>
1. Le Haut-Périgord Noir <small>(2405)</small>
1. Isle-Loue-Auvézère <small>(2406)</small>
1. Isle-Manoire <small>(2407)</small>
1. Lalinde <small>(2408)</small>
1. Montpon-Ménestérol <small>(2409)</small>
1. Pays de la Force <small>(2410)</small>
1. Pays de Montaigne et Gurson <small>(2411)</small>
1. Périgord Central <small>(2412)</small>
1. Périgord Vert Nontronnais <small>(2413)</small>
1. Périgueux-1 <small>(2414)</small>
1. Périgueux-2 <small>(2415)</small>
1. Ribérac <small>(2416)</small>
1. Saint-Astier <small>(2417)</small>
1. Sarlat-la-Canéda <small>(2418)</small>
1. Sud-Bergeracois <small>(2419)</small>
1. Terrasson-Lavilledieu <small>(2420)</small>
1. Thiviers <small>(2421)</small>
1. Trélissac <small>(2422)</small>
1. Vallée Dordogne <small>(2423)</small>
1. Vallée de l'Isle <small>(2424)</small>
1. Vallée de l'Homme <small>(2425)</small>

## Demographics

The inhabitants of Dordogne are known, in French, as _Dordognais_ (women: _Dordognaises_). They are also known as _Périgordins_ or _Périgoudins_.

in 2014, the department of Dordogne had a population of 416,350, for a population density of  inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>. The _arrondissement_ of Périgueux, with 189,301 inhabitants, is by far the largest. The other three, Bergerac, Nontron and Sarlat-la-Canéda, have respectively 111,875, 40,508 and 74,666 inhabitants.

**Evolution of the population in Dordogne**

The cities in the department with more of 5,000 inhabitants are:

|City|Population <small>(2014)</small>|Arrondissement|
| --- | --- | --- |
|Périgueux|30,069|Périgueux|
|Bergerac|27,764|Bergerac|
|Boulazac Isle Manoire|9,823|Périgueux|
|Sarlat-la-Canéda|9,127|Sarlat-la-Canéda|
|Coulounieix-Chamiers|8,089|Périgueux|
|Trélissac|6,732|Périgueux|
|Terrasson-Lavilledieu|6,186|Sarlat-la-Canéda|
|Saint-Astier|5,521|Périgueux|
|Montpon-Ménestérol|5,480|Périgueux|

## Related pages

- Arrondissements of the Dordogne department
- Communes of the Dordogne department

## Other websites

- Departamental Council of Dordogne
- Prefecture official website
- Comité Départamental du Tourisme de la Dordogne

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Dordogne
- **type**: Departments of France, Department
- **image skyline**: Périgueux préfecture (2).JPG
- **image alt**: Prefecture building of the Dordogne department, in Périgueux
- **image caption**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture building of the Dordogne department, in Périgueux
- **image flag**: Drapeau fr département Dordogne.svg
- **image shield**: Blason département fr Dordogne.svg
- **shield alt**: Coat of arms
- **image map**: Dordogne-Position.svg
- **map caption**: Location of Dordogne in France
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision name**: France
- **subdivision type1**: Regions of France, Region
- **subdivision name1**: Nouvelle-Aquitaine
- **established title**: Département
- **established date**: 4 March 1790
- **seat type**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture
- **seat**: Périgueux
- **parts type**: Prefectures in France, Subprefectures
- **parts style**: para
- **p1**: Bergerac
- **p2**: Nontron
- **p3**: Sarlat-la-Canéda
- **leader title**: President of the Departmental Council, President
- **leader name**: Germinal Peiro
- **unit pref**: Metric
- **area total km2**: 9060
- **population total**: 416350
- **population as of**: 2014
- **population density km2**: auto
- **population demonym**: Dordognots, Périgordins
- **blank name sec2**: Arrondissements of France, Arrondissements
- **blank info sec2**: 4
- **blank1 name sec2**: Cantons of France, Cantons
- **blank1 info sec2**: 25
- **blank2 name sec2**: Communes in France, Communes
- **blank2 info sec2**: 545
- **timezone1**: Central European Time, CET
- **utc offset1**: +1
- **timezone1 dst**: Central European Summer Time, CEST
- **utc offset1 dst**: +2
- **iso code**: FR-24
- **website**: [http://www.dordogne.fr/ www.dordogne.fr]