Aveyron

**Aveyron** () is a French department found in the northeast of the Occitanie region of southern France and named after the Aveyron river. Its prefecture is Rodez.

## History

Aveyron is one of the 83 French departments made during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790. It was created with most of the territory of the old province of Rouergue; in fact, the present flag of the department was the flag of Rouergue.

The first known historical inhabitants of the region were the Rutenii tribe but, before them, the area was inhabited by people that built many prehistoric ruins including over 1,000 dolmens - more than any other department in France.

In 1808, the old canton of _Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val_ was transferred from Aveyron to the new department of Tarn-et-Garonne.

## Geography

Aveyron is part of the Occitanie region, in southern France, and is the 6th French department in area with .

The department borders with 7 other departments:
- Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
    - Cantal
- Occitanie
    - Hérault
    - Gard
    - Lozère
    - Tarn
    - Tarn-et-Garonne
    - Lot

Aveyron is in the southern half of the central plateau (_Massif Central_) of France. The mountainous areas (the Aubrac mountains, Palanges Levezou and Lacaune) cover little more than a third of the territory, with the highest point in _Signal de Mailhe-Biau_ (the northwest peak, ) that is  high and is in the region called _Cazalets_; the remaining two thirds are occupied by hills and plateaus (Ségala, Viadène, Lagast and Grands Causses), with a few valleys.

The territory is crossed, among others, by the rivers Lot and Tarn, both tributaries of the Garonne river. The Aveyron river, which gives its name to the department, is a tributary of the Tarn river.

The main rivers of Aveyron are the Lot in the north, the Aveyron in the centre and the Tarn in the south, all tributaries of the Garonne. They flow from east to west, following the general slope of the department, and divide it into four zones.

### Climate

The climate of the Aveyron is subtropical with dry-summer, **Csb** (Mediterranean Climate) in the Köppen climate classification.

The average temperature for the year in Millau 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 Millau is . The month with the most precipitation on average is September with  of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is July with an average of .

## Administration

Aveyron is part of the region of Occitanie. The department is managed by the _Departamental Council of the Aveyron_ in Rodez.

### Administrative divisions

There are 3 _arrondissements_ (districts), 23 _cantons_ and 286 _communes_ (municipalities) in Aveyron.

|INSEE code !! Arrondissement !! Capital !! Population <small>(2014)</small> !! Area <small>(km²)</small> !! Density (Inh./km²) !! _Communes_|||||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|121|Millau|Millau|70,995|3,467.3||97|
|122|Rodez|Rodez|143,841|3,974.4||127|
|123|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|63,808|1,293.4||62|

The following is a list of the 23 **cantons of the Aveyron department** (with their INSEE codes), in France, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:

1. Aubrac et Carladez <small>(1201)</small>
1. Aveyron et Tarn <small>(1202)</small>
1. Causse-Comtal <small>(1203)</small>
1. Causses-Rougiers <small>(1204)</small>
1. Ceor-Ségala <small>(1205)</small>
1. Enne et Alzou <small>(1206)</small>
1. Lot et Dourdou <small>(1207)</small>
1. Lot et Montbazinois <small>(1208)</small>
1. Lot et Palanges <small>(1209)</small>
1. Lot et Truyère <small>(1210)</small>
1. Millau-1 <small>(1211)</small>
1. Millau-2 <small>(1212)</small>
1. Monts du Réquistanais <small>(1213)</small>
1. Nord-Lévezou <small>(1214)</small>
1. Raspes et Lévezou <small>(1215)</small>
1. Rodez-1 <small>(1216)</small>
1. Rodez-2 <small>(1217)</small>
1. Rodez-Onet <small>(1218)</small>
1. Saint-Affrique <small>(1219)</small>
1. Tarn et Causses <small>(1220)</small>
1. Vallon <small>(1221)</small>
1. Villefranche-de-Rouergue <small>(1222)</small>
1. Villeneuvois et Villefranchois <small>(1223)</small>

## Demographics

The inhabitants of Aveyron are known, in French, as _Aveyronnais_ (women: _Aveyronnaises_).

Aveyron has a population, in 2014, of 278,644, for a population density of  inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>. The _arrondissement_ of Rodez, with 143,841 inhabitants, is by far the largest. The other two, Millau and Villefranche-de-Rouergue, have respectively 70,995 and 63,808 inhabitants.

The city with more people living in it is the capital, Rodez (24,088). The subprefectures of Millau and Villefranche-de-Rouergue have, respectively, 22,064 and 11,822 inhabitants.

**Evolution of the population in Aude**

The 10 most important cities in the department are:

|City|Population <small>(2014)</small>|Arrondissement|
| --- | --- | --- |
|Rodez|24,088|Rodez|
|Millau|22,064|Millau|
|Onet-le-Château|11,837|Rodez|
|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|11,822|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|
|Saint-Affrique|8,260|Millau|
|Luc-la-Primaube|5,898|Rodez|
|Decazeville|5,686|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|
|Capdenac-Gare|4,558|Villefranche-de-Rouergue|
|Espalion|4,460|Rodez|
|Sévérac d'Aveyron|4,134|Millau|

## Related pages

- Arrondissements of the Aveyron department
- Communes of the Aveyron department

## Other websites

- Departamental Council website
- Prefecture website
- aveyron.com website
- Aveyron tourism official website

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Aveyron
- **type**: Departments of France, Department
- **image skyline**: Rodez cathedrale.JPG
- **image alt**: Rodez cathedral
- **image caption**: Notre-Dame cathedral, Rodez
- **image flag**: Flag of Rouergue.svg
- **flag size**: 125px
- **flag alt**: Flag of Aveyron
- **image shield**: Blason comtes de Rodez.svg
- **shield size**: 80px
- **shield alt**: Coat of arms
- **image map**: Aveyron-Position.svg
- **map caption**: Location of Aveyron in France
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision name**: France
- **subdivision type1**: Regions of France, Region
- **subdivision name1**: Occitanie
- **established title**: Département
- **established date**: 4 March 1790
- **seat type**: Prefectures in France, Prefecture
- **seat**: Rodez
- **parts type**: Prefectures in France, Subprefectures
- **parts style**: para
- **p1**: Millau
- **p2**: Villefranche-de-Rouergue
- **leader title**: President of the Departmental Council, President
- **leader name**: Jean-Claude Luche
- **unit pref**: Metric
- **area total km2**: 8735.1
- **population total**: 278644
- **population as of**: 2014
- **population rank**: List of French departments by population, 78th
- **population density km2**: auto
- **population demonym**: Aveyronnais
- **blank name sec2**: Arrondissements of France, Arrondissements
- **blank info sec2**: 3
- **blank1 name sec2**: Cantons in France, Cantons
- **blank1 info sec2**: 23
- **blank2 name sec2**: Communes in France, Communes
- **blank2 info sec2**: 286
- **timezone1**: Central European Time, CET
- **utc offset1**: +1
- **timezone1 dst**: Central European Summer Time, CEST
- **utc offset1 dst**: +2
- **iso code**: FR-12
- **website**: [http://aveyron.fr/ http://aveyron.fr/]