Drôme
Drôme
Droma ( Arpitan) | ||
---|---|---|
Communes 363 | | |
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries and lakes, ponds and glaciers larger than 1 km2 |
Drôme (French pronunciation:
History
Saint-Vallier in Drôme was the birthplace of one of France's most famous courtesans, the noble-born Diane de Poitiers (1499–1566), long-term mistress of King Henri II (1519–1559).
The French
Geography
Drôme lies within the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Drôme is bordered by Ardèche to the west, Isère to the north and east, Hautes-Alpes to the east, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence to the southeast and Vaucluse to the south. The northwestern tip of the department is only 3 miles (5 km) from the Loire border.
The boundaries of the department have changed several times with the incorporation of the
The commune of Montfroc forms an small salient which was surrounded by the department of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, which is similar to the small salients of Newmarket in Suffolk, Dieveniškės in Lithuania, Bogatynia in Poland, West Bengal and Sikkim in India, and the Wakhan Corridor in Afghanistan. It also the pene-exclave of the department.
The department contains 363 communes. The smallest commune in France, Rochefourchat, with a population only of one person, is in Drôme.[3]
Climate
The Drôme department is in a zone of transition between the oceanic climate of Lyon, the continental climate to the north and the Mediterranean climate of Provence to the south. In the Rhône valley, the meeting of the mild humid southern Mediterranean air masses with the colder northern air mass sometimes causes particularly violent thunderstorms and snowstorms.
In the northern hills near
The influence of the mountains is evident in the east. In the
The Valence plane is a transition zone between the Mediterranean influence and the northern cold climate. Summers are warmer than in the northern regions, and the increase in sunlight and heat is evident upon the appearance of Mediterranean vegetation in the region. The temperatures are moderate between Lyon and Montélimar. Valence's average temperature in January is 3.8 °C and 22 °C in July. The mistral here blows harder.
From Montélimar, the climate can be considered to be that of a Mediterranean climate. Near the highway, the change of vegetation is particularly visible near the stream at
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called Drômois.
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Sources:[4][5] |
Principal towns
The most populous commune, home to about 1/8 of the department's population, is Valence, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are six communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:[3]
Commune | Population (2019) |
---|---|
Valence | 64,749 |
Montélimar | 39,818 |
Romans-sur-Isère | 33,098 |
Bourg-lès-Valence | 19,792 |
Pierrelatte | 13,510 |
Portes-lès-Valence | 10,680 |
Economy
Most of the economic activity of the Drôme department is located in the west of the
Statistics
- Total employment (2004): 158 930 (about 10.6% is self-employed)
- Unemployment rate (2006): 9.9%
- Jobs per sector of activity (2005)
- Agriculture: 6.0%
- Industry: 20.4%
- BTP: 6.8%
- Commerce: 15.0%
- Services: 51.8%
- Qualification of Jobs (1999)
- Farmers: 4.0%
- CEO: 7.8%
- Executives: 9.6%
- Technicians and associate professionals: 23.0%
- Employees: 27.2%
- Labourers: 28.5%
- Average annual salary (2004)
- CEO: €53 113
- Executives: €39 265
- Technicians and associate professionals: €22 927
- Employees: €15 688
- Labourers: €16 344
- Apprentices and labourers : €7 498
Tourism
- The Drôme benefits from an excellent image in the view of tourists. Attendance has grown steadily (+4% between 2006 and 2007), faster than the neighbouring departments of Ardèche and the Vaucluse (+1%).
- Number of overnight stays in 2022: 12.8 million[6]
- The Tourism Committee of the Drôme department's website La Drôme, du Vercors à la Provence received over 44000 visits in 2007, along with a new TV station Drome.tv
Main companies
Main companies in 2002 | ||||
Rank | Company | Revenue | Headquarters | Activity |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Imaje | 231 Million Euros | Bourg-lès-Valence | Industrial plant |
2 | Alain Manoukian | 157 Million Euros | Tain-l'Hermitage | Moving company |
3 | Lafuma | 154 Million Euros | Anneyron | Hiking equipment |
4 | Crouzet Automations | 122 Million Euros | Valence |
Automation systems |
5 | Spit | 121 Million Euros | Bourg-lès-Valence | Metallic fixation systems |
Politics
The president of the Departmental Council is Marie-Pierre Mouton, elected in May 2017.
Party | seats | |
---|---|---|
• | Socialist Party | 9 |
Les Republicains |
10 | |
Union of Democrats and Independents | 8 | |
• | Miscellaneous Left |
6 |
Miscellaneous Right |
4 | |
MoDem | 0 | |
• | The Greens | 0 |
• | Left Radical Party |
1 |
• | French Communist Party | 0 |
Current National Assembly Representatives
Constituency | Member[7] | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
Drôme's 1st constituency | Mireille Clapot | La République En Marche!
| |
Drôme's 2nd constituency | Lisette Pollet | RN | |
Drôme's 3rd constituency | Marie Pochon | EELV
| |
Drôme's 4th constituency | Emmanuelle Anthoine | The Republicans |
Tourism
Sport activities in Drôme include:
- in winter: skiing, cross-country skiing, snow-shoeing
- in summer: excursions, mountain biking in the mountainous area
The Drôme River is also a great place to practice canoëing and kayaking. In the spring the water flow allows for rafting. The Saoü Forest is known for its climbing paths.
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Lavender fields near Die
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Grignan town and castle
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Ferdinand Cheval's palace
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Vercors Plateau
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Nougat from Montélimar
See also
- Cantons of the Drôme department
- Communes of the Drôme department
- Arrondissements of the Drôme department
- Marie Louis Descorches
- Albert Severin Roche, WW1 Legion of Honour recipient.
References
- ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
- ^ "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
- ^ a b c Populations légales 2019: 26 Drôme, INSEE
- ^ "Historique de la Drôme". Le SPLAF.
- ^ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
- ^ "Chiffres clés tourisme et attractivité 2022" (PDF). La Drôme Tourisme. 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
- ^ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
External links
- Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 8 (11th ed.). 1911. .
- (in French) Prefecture website
- (in French) Departement Council website