Gironde

**Gironde** () is a department in the southwest of France. It is named after the Gironde estuary.

The department is in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Its prefecture is Bordeaux.

## History

Gironde was formed during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790 with parts of the old provinces of Guyenne and Gascony.

From July 1793 to April 1795, the department's name was changed to **Bec-d'Ambès** to avoid the association with the Girondists, a French revolutionary group.

The department was divided into seven districts: Bordeaux, Libourne, La Réole, Bazas, Cadillac, Blaye and Lesparre. Its capital was the city of Bordeaux.

## Geography

Gironde is part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, southwestern France, and is the largest department of Metropolitan France with an area of .

There four main zones in the Gironde; they are:
1. the **coastal zone**, including part of the _Côte d'Argent_ ("Silver coast");
1. the **forest** that covers the western half of the department;
1. the ***Bordelais***, region around Bordeaux and where the different kinds of Bordeaux wines are produced; and
1. the ***Bazadais***, the region around the town of Bazas, in the soutwest of the department and where farming is very important.

The department is bordered by the departments: Charente-Maritime, Dordogne, Lot-et-Garonne and Landes. The Atlantic Ocean (_Gulf of Biscay_) is to the west of the department.

The main rivers in the department are the Dordogne and the Garonne rivers; the two rivers form, after their confluence, the Gironde estuary, the largest estuary of France.

### Climate

The climate in Bordeaux is Marine West Coast Climate (Köppen climate classification ***Cfb***), with mild winters and warm summers.

The average temperature for the year in Bordeaux is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .

The average amount of precipitation for the year in Bordeaux is . The month with the most precipitation on average is November with  of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is July with an average of .

## Administration

Gironde is part of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine and is managed by the _Departmental Council of Gironde_ in Bordeaux.

### Administrative divisions

There are 6 _arrondissements_ (districts), 33 _cantons_ and 538 _communes_ (municipalities) in Gironde.
|INSEE code !! Arrondissement !! Capital !! Population <small>(2014)</small> !! width=70px |Area <small>(km²)</small> !! Density <small>(Inh./km²)</small> !! _Communes_|||||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|331|Blaye|Blaye|88,115|782.4||63|
|332|Bordeaux|Bordeaux|921,668|1,521.8||82|
|333|Langon|Langon|130,911|2,644.3||197|
|334|Lesparre-Médoc|Lesparre-Médoc|86,560|2,274.4||50|
|335|Libourne|Libourne|152,602|1,282.9||129|
|336|Arcachon|Arcachon|146,160|1,469.8||17|

The following is a list of the 33 cantons of the **Gironde** department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:

1. Andernos-les-Bains <small>(3301)</small>
1. Bordeaux-1 <small>(3302)</small>
1. Bordeaux-2 <small>(3303)</small>
1. Bordeaux-3 <small>(3304)</small>
1. Bordeaux-4 <small>(3305)</small>
1. Bordeaux-5 <small>(3306)</small>
1. Le Bouscat <small>(3307)</small>
1. La Brède <small>(3308)</small>
1. Cenon <small>(3309)</small>
1. Les Coteaux de Dordogne <small>(3310)</small>
1. Créon <small>(3311)</small>
1. L'Entre-Deux-Mers <small>(3312)</small>
1. L'Estuaire <small>(3313)</small>
1. Gujan-Mestras <small>(3314)</small>
1. Les Landes des Graves <small>(3315)</small>
1. Le Libournais-Fronsadais <small>(3316)</small>
1. Lormont <small>(3317)</small>
1. Mérignac-1 <small>(3318)</small>
1. Mérignac-2 <small>(3319)</small>
1. Le Nord-Gironde <small>(3320)</small>
1. Le Nord-Libournais <small>(3321)</small>
1. Le Nord-Médoc <small>(3322)</small>
1. Pessac-1 <small>(3323)</small>
1. Pessac-2 <small>(3324)</small>
1. Les Portes du Médoc <small>(3325)</small>
1. La Presqu'île <small>(3326)</small>
1. Le Réolais et Les Bastides <small>(3327)</small>
1. Saint-Médard-en-Jalles <small>(3328)</small>
1. Le Sud-Gironde <small>(3329)</small>
1. Le Sud-Médoc <small>(3330)</small>
1. Talence <small>(3331)</small>
1. La Teste-de-Buch <small>(3332)</small>
1. Villenave-d'Ornon <small>(3333)</small>

## Demographics

The inhabitants of Gironde are known, in French, as _Girondins_ (women: _Girondines_).

The department of Gironde has a population, in 2014, of 1,526,016, for a population density of  inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>. The _arrondissement_ of Bordeaux, with 921,668 inhabitants, is by far the largest. The _arrondissements_ of Blaye and Lesparre-Médoc are those with less people, with 88,115 and 86,560 inhabitants.

**Evolution of the population in Gironde**

The main cities in the department are:

|City|Population <small>(2014)</small>|Arrondissement|
| --- | --- | --- |
|Bordeaux|246,586|Bordeaux|
|Mérignac|69,301|Bordeaux|
|Pessac|61,514|Bordeaux|
|Talence|41,182|Bordeaux|
|Villenave-d'Ornon|31,027|Bordeaux|
|Saint-Médard-en-Jalles|29,779|Bordeaux|
|Bègles|26,437|Bordeaux|
|La Teste-de-Buch|25,990|Arcachon|
|Gradignan|24,841|Bordeaux|
|Libourne|24,595|Libourne|

## Related pages

- Arrondissements of the Gironde department
- Communes of the Gironde department

## Other websites

- Departmental Council of Gironde
- Prefecture official website
- Agence de Développement Touristique de la Gironde

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Gironde
- **type**: Departments of France, Department
- **image skyline**: Périgueux préfecture (2).JPG
- **image alt**: Prefecture building of the Gironde department, in Bordeaux
- **image caption**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture building of the Gironde department, in Bordeaux
- **image flag**: Flag of Gironde.svg
- **image shield**: Blason département fr Gironde.svg
- **shield alt**: Coat of arms
- **image map**: Gironde-Position.svg
- **map caption**: Location of Gironde 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**: Bordeaux
- **parts type**: Prefectures in France, Subprefectures
- **parts style**: para
- **p1**: Arcachon
- **p2**: Blaye
- **p3**: Langon, Gironde, Langon
- **p4**: Lesparre-Médoc
- **p5**: Libourne
- **leader title**: President of the Departmental Council, President
- **leader name**: Jean-Luc Gleyze
- **unit pref**: Metric
- **area total km2**: 9975.6
- **population total**: 1526016
- **population as of**: 2014
- **population density km2**: auto
- **population demonym**: Girondins
- **blank name sec2**: Arrondissements of France, Arrondissements
- **blank info sec2**: 6
- **blank1 name sec2**: Cantons of France, Cantons
- **blank1 info sec2**: 33
- **blank2 name sec2**: Communes in France, Communes
- **blank2 info sec2**: 538
- **timezone1**: Central European Time, CET
- **utc offset1**: +1
- **timezone1 dst**: Central European Summer Time, CEST
- **utc offset1 dst**: +2
- **iso code**: FR-33
- **website**: [http://www.gironde.fr/ www.gironde.fr]