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Administrative divisions of France

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Metropolitan France

As of January 1, 2007, metropolitan France is divided into:

  • 22 regions (although strictly speaking Corsica is in fact a "territorial collectivity", not a region; it is nonetheless referred to as a region in common speech)
  • the regions are subdivided into 96 departments
  • the departments are in turn divided into 329 arrondissements
  • the arrondissements are then divided into 3,879 cantons
  • the cantons are subdivided into 36,569 communes (although some of the larger communes actually are composed of several cantons)
    • 3 communes (Paris, Marseille, and Lyon) are further divided into 45 municipal arrondissements
    • there also exist 730 associated communes (as of January 2006), formerly independent communes which were merged with larger communes but have retained some limited degree of autonomy (e.g. the commune of Lomme which was absorbed by Lille in 2000 and transformed into an "associated commune" inside the commune of Lille)

Furthermore, as of January 1, 2007, there exist 2,573 intercommunal structures grouping 33,327 communes (91.1% of all the communes of metropolitan France), with 52.86 million people living in them (86.7% of the population of metropolitan France).[1] These intercommunal structures are:

Overseas

The French Republic is further made up of the following overseas administrative divisions:

  • 4 overseas regions (régions d'outre-mer, or ROM): Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, and Réunion, which have the same status as metropolitan regions (as much as Hawaii has the same status as a continental US state). The overseas regions are also classified as overseas departments (départements d'outre-mer, or DOM), again with the same status as departments in metropolitan France. This double structure (region/department) is new, due to the recent extension of the regional scheme to the overseas departments, and may soon transform into a single structure, with the merger of the regional and departmental assemblies, unless new departments are created such as in the case of Réunion, where it has been proposed to create a second department in the south of the island, with the region of Réunion above these two départements.
  • the overseas regions/departments are subdivided into 12 arrondissements
  • the 12 arrondissements are further subdivided into 153 cantons
  • the 153 cantons are composed of 112 communes (in the 4 DOM, there are more cantons than communes, unlike in metropolitan France, because many communes are divided into several cantons, whereas in metropolitan France in general cantons are made up of several communes, except in large communes like Toulouse or Lille which are divided into several cantons)
  • Furthermore, as of January 1, 2007, there exist 15 intercommunal structures in the overseas departments, grouping 87 communes (77.7% of all the communes of the overseas departments), with 1.36 million people living in them (78.5% of the population of these departments).[1] These intercommunal structures are:
  • 6 Agglomeration communities
  • 9 Commune communities
  • French Polynesia (designated as an "overseas country", French: pays d'outre-mer) is divided into 5 administrative subdivisions (subdivisions administratives). For elections it is divided into 6 electoral districts (circonscriptions électorales) which differ slightly from the 5 administrative subdivisions. The 5 administrative subdivisions are divided into 48 communes. There also exist some associated communes as in metropolitan France.
  • Mayotte (designated as a "departmental collectivity", French: collectivité départementale) is divided into 17 communes with no arrondissements. There are also 19 cantons matching exactly the communes except in the case of the commune of Mamoudzou which is divided into three cantons.
  • Saint-Barthélemy is a new overseas collectivities created on February 22, 2007. It was previously a commune inside the Guadeloupe region. The commune structure was abolished and Saint-Barthélemy is now one of only three permanently inhabited territories of the French Republic with no commune structure. There are no cantons and arrondissements either.
  • Saint-Martin is also a new overseas collectivities created on February 22, 2007. It was previously a commune inside the Guadeloupe region. The commune structure was abolished and Saint-Martin is now one of only three permanently inhabited territories of the French Republic with no commune structure. There are no cantons and arrondissements either.
  • Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (designated as a "territorial collectivity", French: collectivité territoriale, the same designation as Corsica which is a region and not an overseas collectivity) is divided into 2 communes with no arrondissements or cantons.
  • Wallis and Futuna is divided into 3 districts (circonscriptions territoriales) which exactly match the three traditional chiefdoms (royaumes coutumiers) with their traditional kings still at their head, the only kings currently recognized in the French Republic. These 3 districts are: Uvea, Sigave, and Alo. Uvea is the most populous and is further divided into 3 wards (districts in French): Hahake, Mua, and Hihifo. Wallis and Futuna is one of only three permanently inhabited territory of the French Republic with no communes. It also has no arrondissements or cantons.
  • 1 sui generis collectivity (collectivité sui generis): New Caledonia, whose status is unique in the French Republic: it is the only French local government which is not a territorial collectivity (although its subdivisions are territorial collectivities). A self-determination referendum is scheduled for 2014 to decide the future status of the New Caledonia.
  • It is divided into 3 provinces
  • the provinces are subdivided into 33 communes
  • the French Southern and Antarctic Lands are divided into 5 districts (districts in French):
1. Kerguelen Islands
2. Crozet Islands
3. Amsterdam Island and Saint Paul Island
4. Adelie Land, although sovereignty over Adelie Land in Antarctica is suspended since the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959.
5. the Scattered Islands (îles Éparses), a collection of five non permanently inhabited islands in the Indian Ocean: Bassas da India, Europa, Juan de Nova, Glorioso, and Tromelin. These were previously administered separately but they have been joined with the French Southern and Antarctic Lands since February 2007.
  • Uninhabited islands which belong directly to the central State public land:
  • Clipperton Island: uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico which is directly under the authority of the Minister of Overseas France in Paris (until February 2007 it was administered by the high-commissioner of the French Republic in French Polynesia). Since the Scattered Islands were joined with the French Southern and Antarctic Lands also in February 2007, Clipperton Island is now the only island left in this category.

Territorial collectivities

French administrative subdivisions that have a (limited) freedom of administration are called territorial collectivities. Among them are regions, departments, communes, overseas collectivities, provinces (New Caledonia) and the territorial collectivity of Corsica which belongs to no category (but is close to regions). New Caledonia is unique as it is not a territorial collectivity.

General rules

Citizens from all parts of France, including overseas possessions, vote in national elections (presidential, legislative) and all collectivities are represented in the Senate.

List of departments by region

Regions and departments of France.


Historical divisions

Historically, France was divided into provinces; see Provinces of France.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Template:Fr icon Direction générale des collectivités locales (DGCL), Ministry of the Interior. "Répartition des EPCI à fiscalité propre par département au 01/01/2007" (PDF). Retrieved 2007-05-19. {{cite web}}: Check |first= value (help)
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