Cher (department)

**Cher** is a department in the centre of France in the Centre-Val de Loire region. It is named after the Cher river, the most important river in the department.

Its prefecture is Bourges.

## History

The department is one of the 83 French departments made during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790. The department was created from part of the former province of Berry.

The new department had seven districts: Aubigny, Sancerre, Sancoins, Saint-Amand, Châteaumeillant, Bourges and Vierzon. The capital (now prefecture) was Bourges.

In 1800, with the creation of the _arrondissements_ in France, the seven districts were changed into three _arrondissements_: Bourges, Saint-Amand-Mont-Rond and Sancerre.

On 10 September 1926, the _arrondissement_ of Sancerre was eliminated. In 1984, a new _arrondissement_ was created: Vierzon.

## Geography

Cher is part of the Centre-Val de Loire region. It has an area of .

The highest point of the department is _Le Magnoux_ (), in the south end of the department in the _commune_ of Préveranges, and that is   above sea level.

The department is bordered by 6 departments in 4 regions:
- Centre-Val de Loire region
    - Loir-et-Cher (northwest)
    - Indre (west)
    - Loiret (north)
- Nouvelle-Aquitaine region
    - Creuse (south)
- Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region
    - Allier (southeast)
- Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
    - Nièvre (east)

The main rivers are:
- Cher, a left tributary of the Loire; it is  long. The department is named after this river.
- Allier, also a left tributary of the Loire; it is  long.
- Indre, also a left tributary of the Loire; it is  long.
- Sauldre, a right tributary of the Cher; it is  long.

### Climate

The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Bourges is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Marine West Coast Climate) and of the subtype **Cfb**.

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

The average temperature for the year in Bourges 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 .

## Administration

The department is managed by the _Departmental Council of the Cher_ in Bourges. Cher is part of the region of Centre-Val de Loire.

### Administrative divisions

There are 3 _arrondissements_ (districts), 19 _cantons_ and 290 _communes_ (municipalities) in Cher.
|INSEE code !!Arrondissement !! Capital !! Population <small>(2014)</small> !! width=60px | Area <small>(km²)</small> !! Density <small>(Inh./km²)</small> !! _Communes_|||||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|181|Bourges|Bourges|173,889|2,797.8||131|
|182|Saint-Amand-Montrond|Saint-Amand-Montrond|65,145|2,669.8||116|
|183|Vierzon|Vierzon|71,236|1,767.4||43|

The following is a list of the 19 cantons of the Cher department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:

1. Aubigny-sur-Nère <small>(1801)</small>
1. Avord <small>(1802)</small>
1. Bourges-1 <small>(1803)</small>
1. Bourges-2 <small>(1804)</small>
1. Bourges-3 <small>(1805)</small>
1. Bourges-4 <small>(1806)</small>
1. Chârost <small>(1807)</small>
1. Châteaumeillant <small>(1808)</small>
1. Dun-sur-Auron <small>(1809)</small>
1. La Guerche-sur-l'Aubois <small>(1810)</small>
1. Mehun-sur-Yèvre <small>(1811)</small>
1. Saint-Amand-Montrond <small>(1812)</small>
1. Saint-Doulchard <small>(1813)</small>
1. Saint-Germain-du-Puy <small>(1814)</small>
1. Saint-Martin-d'Auxigny <small>(1815)</small>
1. Sancerre <small>(1816)</small>
1. Trouy <small>(1817)</small>
1. Vierzon-1 <small>(1818)</small>
1. Vierzon-2 <small>(1819)</small>

## Demographics

The inhabitants of Cher are known, in French, as _Chériens_ (women: _Chériennes_) or _Berrichons_ (women: _Berrichonnes_).

Cher has a population, in 2014, of 310,270, for a population density of  inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>. The _arrondissement_ of Bourges, with 173,889 inhabitants, is by far the largest.

**Evolution of the population in Cher**

The main cities in the department are:

|City|Population <small>(2014)</small>|Arrondissement|
| --- | --- | --- |
|Bourges|66,528|Bourges|
|Vierzon|27,050|Vierzon|
|Saint-Amand-Montrond|10,161|Saint-Amand-Montrond|
|Saint-Doulchard|9,363|Bourges|
|Mehun-sur-Yèvre|6,717|Vierzon|
|Saint-Florent-sur-Cher|6,616|Bourges|
|Aubigny-sur-Nère|5,560|Vierzon|
|Saint-Germain-du-Puy|5,063|Bourges|
|Dun-sur-Auron|3,948|Saint-Amand-Montrond|
|Trouy|3,917|Bourges|

## Related pages

- Arrondissements of the Cher department
- Communes of the Cher department

## Other websites

- Departmental Council website
- Prefecture website

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Cher
- **type**: Departments of France, Department
- **image skyline**: Bourges - Préfecture du Cher -013.jpg
- **image alt**: Prefecture building of the Cher department
- **image caption**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture building of the Cher department, in Bourges
- **image flag**: Drapeau fr département Cher.svg
- **image shield**: Blason département fr Cher.svg
- **shield size**: 75
- **image map**: Cher-Position.svg
- **map caption**: Location of Cher in France
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision name**: France
- **subdivision type1**: Regions of France, Region
- **subdivision name1**: Centre-Val de Loire
- **established title**: Département
- **established date**: 4 March 1790
- **seat type**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture
- **seat**: Bourges
- **parts type**: Prefectures in France, Subprefectures
- **parts style**: para
- **p1**: Saint-Amand-Montrond
- **p2**: Vierzon
- **leader title**: President of the Departmental Council, President
- **leader name**: Michel Autissier
- **unit pref**: Metric
- **area total km2**: 7235.0
- **population total**: 310270
- **population as of**: 2014
- **population density km2**: auto
- **population demonym**: Berrichons
- **blank name sec2**: Arrondissements of France, Arrondissements
- **blank info sec2**: 3
- **blank1 name sec2**: Cantons in France, Cantons
- **blank1 info sec2**: 19
- **blank2 name sec2**: Communes in France, Communes
- **blank2 info sec2**: 290
- **timezone1**: Central European Time, CET
- **utc offset1**: +1
- **timezone1 dst**: Central European Summer Time, CEST
- **utc offset1 dst**: +2
- **iso code**: FR-18
- **website**: [http://www.departement18.fr/ Official website]