Dijon

**Dijon** is a commune in France. It is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region; it is also the prefecture (regional capital) of the region but the council of the region meets in Besançon.

It is the main city of the department and also the largest city of the region.

## History

Dijon began as a Roman settlement called Divio. Saint Benignus (Saint Kelly), the city's patron saint, is said to have spread Christianity to the area before being killed. It was home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th century until the late 1400s and was a place of great wealth and power and one of the great European centers of art, learning and science.

## Geography

Dijon is in the east of the department and in the centre of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. It has an area of , and its average altitude is ; at the city hall, the altitude is .

The distances from Dijon to other cities are:
- Paris, the national capital - ;
- Bordeaux - ;
- Toulouse - ;
- Lyon - ;
- Montpellier - ;
- Strasbourg - ;
- Nantes - ;
- Marseille - .

Dijon is surrounded by the _communes_ː

### Climate

The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Dijon is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Maritime Temperate climate) and of the subtype **Cfb**.

The average temperature for the year in Dijon 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 Dijon is . The month with the most precipitation on average is October with  of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is February with an average of .

## Population

The inhabitants of Dijon are known, in French, as _Dijonnais_ (women: _Dijonnaises_).

With a population of 153,668, Nevers has a population density of  inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>.

**Evolution of the population in Dijon**

Dijon forms, together with other 14 _communes_, the urban area of Dijon with a population of 241,591 inhabitants (2014) and an area of . This urban area is the centre of the metropolitan area of Dijon, formed by 295 _communes_, with a population of 382,590 inhabitants (2014) and an area of .

## Administration

Dijon is a prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department since 1800. It is also the capital of the _arrondissement_ of Dijon and the administrative centre () of six cantons:
- Dijon-1, formed with part of Dijon, with 25,235 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.
- Dijon-2, formed with part of Dijon, with 27,485 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.
- Dijon-3, formed with part of Dijon, with 24,359 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.
- Dijon-4, formed with part of Dijon, with 26,824 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.
- Dijon-5, formed with part of Dijon, with 24,403 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.
- Dijon-6, formed with 2 _communes_ (Corcelles-les-Monts and Flavignerot) and part of Dijon, with 26,182 inhabitants <small>(2014)</small>.

Dijon is part of the intercommunality _Dijon Métropole_.

## Education

- Burgundy School of Business

## Sister cities

Dijon is twinned with

- York, England, since 1953
- Dallas, United States, since 1957
- Mainz, Germany, since 1958
- Volgograd, Russia, since 1960
- Skopje, Macedonia, since 1961
- Reggio Emilia, Italy, since 1963
- Cluj-Napoca, Romania, since 1965
- Pécs, Hungary, since 1966
- Opole, Poland, since 2009
- Guimarães, Portugal, since 2011
- Chefchaouen, Morocco, since 2016
- Prague, Czech Republic, since 2016
- Dakar, Senegal, since 2017

## Related pages

- Arrondissement of Dijon
- Communes of the Côte-d'Or department

## Other websites

- Ville de Dijon - official website
- Tourist office website

## Infobox (french commune)

- **name**: Dijon
- **commune status**: Prefectures of France, Prefecture and Communes of France, commune
- **image**: Dijon - montage.jpg
- **caption**: Top: Dijon City Hall, Bottom: Saint Benigne Cathedral, Statue of Jean-Philippe Rameau, Statue of Francois Rude, Saint Michel Church
- **image coat of arms**: Blason ville fr Dijon (Côte-d'Or).svg
- **arrondissement**: Dijon
- **canton**: Chief town of 6 cantons
- **insee**: 21231
- **postal code**: 21000
- **mayor**: François Rebsamen
- **term**: 2015–2020
- **intercommunality**: Dijon Métropole
- **elevation m**: 315
- **elevation min m**: 220
- **elevation max m**: 410
- **area km2**: 40.41
- **population**: 153668
- **population date**: 2014
- **website**: http://www.dijon.fr/