Cher (department)

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Cher
Department
Bourges - Prefecture du Cher -013.jpg
Prefecture of Cher, in Bourges
Drapeau fr departement Cher.svg
Flag
Blason departement fr Cher.svg
Coat of arms
Cher-Position.svg
Location of Cher in France
Coordinates: 47°0′N2°35′E / 47.000°N 2.583°E / 47.000; 2.583 Coordinates: 47°0′N2°35′E / 47.000°N 2.583°E / 47.000; 2.583
CountryFrance
Region Centre-Val de Loire
Prefecture Bourges
Subprefectures Saint-Amand-Montrond
Vierzon
Government
 •  President of the Departmental Council Jacques Fleury [1] (LR)
Area
1
 • Total7,235 km2 (2,793 sq mi)
Population
 (Jan. 2019) [2]
 • Total302,306
 • Rank 76th
 • Density42/km2 (110/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number 18
Arrondissements 3
Cantons 19
Communes 287
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Cher ( /ʃɛər/ ; French:  [ʃɛʁ] ; Berrichon: Char) is a department in the administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is named after the river Cher. In 2019, it had a population of 302,306. [3]

Contents

History

Cher is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. Most of it was created, along with the adjacent department of Indre from the former province of Berry. The southeastern corner of the department, however, was part of the Duchy of Bourbon.

Geography

The department is part of the current administrative region of Centre-Val de Loire. It is surrounded by the departments of Indre, Loir-et-Cher, Loiret, Nièvre, Allier, and Creuse.

Principal towns

The most populous commune is Bourges, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 8 communes with more than 5,000 inhabitants: [3]

CommunePopulation (2019)
Bourges 64,541
Vierzon 25,464
Saint-Doulchard 9,607
Saint-Amand-Montrond 9,488
Mehun-sur-Yèvre 6,555
Saint-Florent-sur-Cher 6,442
Aubigny-sur-Nère 5,502
Saint-Germain-du-Puy 5,041

Demographics

The inhabitants of the department are called Chériens or Berrichons after the former province of Berry. [4]

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1791207,541—    
1801217,785+0.48%
1806228,158+0.93%
1821239,561+0.33%
1831256,059+0.67%
1841273,645+0.67%
1851306,261+1.13%
1861323,393+0.55%
1872335,392+0.33%
1881351,405+0.52%
1891359,276+0.22%
1901345,543−0.39%
1911337,810−0.23%
1921304,800−1.02%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1931293,918−0.36%
1936288,695−0.36%
1946286,070−0.09%
1954284,376−0.07%
1962293,514+0.40%
1968304,601+0.62%
1975316,350+0.54%
1982320,174+0.17%
1990321,559+0.05%
1999314,428−0.25%
2006314,676+0.01%
2011311,694−0.19%
2016307,110−0.30%
Sources: [5] [6]

Politics

The President of the General Council is Jacques Fleury of The Republicans, elected in July 2021. [7]

Partyseats
Union for a Popular Movement 10
• Socialist Party 9
• French Communist Party 7
Miscellaneous Right 5
• Miscellaneous Left 4

Current National Assembly representatives

ConstituencyMember [8] Party
1st François Cormier-Bouligeon La République En Marche!
2nd Nadia Essayan MoDem
3rd Loïc Kervran La République En Marche!

Tourism

The Bourges Cathedral of St. Étienne is a major tourist attraction.

Languages

The historical languages are Berrichon and the northern version of Bourbonnais. These are both dialects of French, or the Langues d'oïl. They are named respectively after the former Province of Berry and the former Duchy of Bourbon. Some 11 communes in the extreme South used to speak Occitan.

The old dialects were in widespread use until the middle decades of the twentieth century and incorporated major regional variations within the department, influenced by the dialects of adjacent regions near the departmental frontiers. During the twentieth century government educational policy promoted a more standardised version of the French language.

In the extreme south of the department influence from the southern Occitan language begins to appear, with "chambrat" being used in place of "grenier a foin" (hayloft), "betoulle" in place of "bouleau" (birch tree) and "aigue" in place of "eau" (water).

See also

Related Research Articles

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Berry, France Place in France

Berry is a former province located in central France. It was a province of France until departments replaced the provinces on 4 March 1790, when Berry became divided between the départements of Cher and Indre.

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Allier Department of France in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

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Loir-et-Cher Department of France

Loir-et-Cher is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France. Its name is originated from two rivers which cross it, the Loir in its northern part and the Cher in its southern part. Its prefecture is Blois. The INSEE and La Poste gave it the number 41. It had a population of 329,470 in 2019.

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Loire-Atlantique Department of France

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Montluçon Subprefecture and commune in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France

Montluçon is a commune in central France on the river Cher. It is the largest commune in the Allier department, although the department's prefecture is located in the smaller town of Moulins. Its inhabitants are known as Montluçonnais. The town is in the traditional province of Bourbonnais and was part of the mediaeval duchy of Bourbon.

Saint-Saturnin, Cher Commune in Centre-Val de Loire, France

Saint-Saturnin is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Charenton-du-Cher Commune in Centre-Val de Loire, France

Charenton-du-Cher is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Concressault is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Marseilles-lès-Aubigny Commune in Centre-Val de Loire, France

Marseilles-lès-Aubigny is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Rezay Commune in Centre-Val de Loire, France

Rezay is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Saint-Priest-la-Marche is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Saugy is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France.

Vienne Department of France

Vienne is a landlocked department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It takes its name from the river Vienne. It had a population of 438,435 in 2019.

References

  1. ↑ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. ↑ "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2019". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2021.
  3. 1 2 Populations légales 2019: 18 Cher, INSEE
  4. ↑ Cher, habitants.fr
  5. ↑ "Historique du Cher". Le SPLAF.
  6. ↑ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  7. ↑ Simon, Frank (1 July 2021). "Politique - Jacques Fleury, élu président du conseil départemental du Cher". leberry.fr (in French). Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  8. ↑ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
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