Échirolles

Échirolles
Commune
Échirolles town hall with Eugène Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People reproduced on its façade
Coat of arms
Location of Échirolles
Échirolles Échirolles
Coordinates: 45°08′37″N 5°43′06″E
Country	France
Region	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Department	Isère
Arrondissement	Grenoble
Canton	Échirolles
Intercommunality	Grenoble-Alpes Métropole
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Renzo Sulli
Area 1	8 km2 (3 sq mi)
Population  (2021)	36,849
• Density	4,600/km2 (12,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	38151 /38130
Elevation	217–395 m (712–1,296 ft) (avg. 237 m or 778 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Échirolles (French pronunciation: [eʃiʁɔl]; Arpitan: Ècherôles) is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France.

It is the second-largest suburb of the city of Grenoble, and is adjacent to it on the south.

History

Former industrial village, the majority of its inhabitants worked in the viscose factories, a fabric which was invented in Échirolles in 1884 by French scientist and industrial Hilaire de Chardonnet, before becoming universally famous. The process for manufacturing viscose was then patented by three British scientists, Charles Frederick Cross, Edward John Bevan and Clayton Beadle, in 1891.

Population

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1836 735 —     1841 702 −4.5% 1851 639 −9.0% 1861 615 −3.8% 1872 652 +6.0% 1881 619 −5.1% 1891 633 +2.3% 1901 574 −9.3% 1911 572 −0.3% 1921 597 +4.4% 1931 2,765 +363.1%

Year Pop. ±% 1946 2,825 +2.2% 1954 3,762 +33.2% 1962 7,111 +89.0% 1968 15,429 +117.0% 1975 33,288 +115.7% 1982 37,360 +12.2% 1990 34,435 −7.8% 1999 32,806 −4.7% 2006 35,687 +8.8% 2011 35,995 +0.9%

Personalities

• Thernand Bakouboula footballer
• Seynabou Benga handball player
• Stephane Biakolo footballer
• Vincent Clerc (b. 1981), rugby footballer of Stade Toulousain and of the French national team.
• Mélissa Theuriau (b. 1978), journalist.
• Calogero (b. 1971), pop/rock singer, composer and songwriter.
• Laure Péquegnot (b. 1975), skier.
• Gérald Hustache-Mathieu (b. 1968), film director and scenarist.
• David di Tommaso (1979–2005), football player.
• Sami Bouajila (b. 1966), actor.
• Guilbaut Colas (b. 18 June 1983), freestyle skier.
• David Lazzaroni (b. 4 February 1985), ski jumper.
• Sandrine Aubert (b. 6 October 1982), alpine skier.
• Jonathan Tinhan footballer

International relations

Échirolles is twinned with:

• Grugliasco, Italy
• Honhoue, Benin
• Kimberley, England

See also

• Musée Géo-Charles
• Urban unit of Grenoble

External links

• Official website
• Official website of the Paroisse Charles de Foucauld in Échirolles
• Museum of viscose in Échirolles