Colombes () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the northwestern suburbs of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2019, Colombes was the 53rd largest city in France.

Name

The name Colombes comes from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''columna'' (

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intelligib ...

''colombe''), meaning "column". This is interpreted as referring either to a

megalithic A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea. The ...

column used in ancient times by a

druidic A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Wh ...

cult which stood in Colombes until its destruction during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

, or to the columns of an

atrium Atrium may refer to: Anatomy * Atrium (heart), an anatomical structure of the heart * Atrium, the genital structure next to the genital aperture in the reproductive system of gastropods * Atrium of the ventricular system of the brain * Pulmona ...

in a ruined

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...

that also stood in Colombes.

History

On 13 March 1896, 17% of the territory of Colombes was detached and became the commune of

Bois-Colombes Bois-Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2017, it had a population of 28,239. International companies such as Colgate-Palmolive, IBM and Aviva have their French hea ...

(literally "Colombes Woods"). On 2 May 1910, 19% of the (reduced) territory of Colombes was detached and became the commune of

La Garenne-Colombes La Garenne-Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from Notre Dame de Paris which is the center of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. Name The city used to be p ...

. Thus, the commune of Colombes is now only two-thirds the size of its territory before 1896. The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of Colombes proper, in its geography at the given years.

Population

Geography

Climate

Colombes has a

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Cfb''). The average annual temperature in Colombes is . The average annual rainfall is with May as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Colombes was on 6 August 2003; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 17 January 1985.

Administration

The city is divided into two cantons: * Colombes-1 (north) * Colombes-2 (south)

Transport

Colombes is served by four stations on the

Transilien Paris – Saint-Lazare Transilien Paris-Saint-Lazare is one of the sectors in the Paris Transilien suburban rail network. The trains on this sector depart from Gare Saint-Lazare in central Paris and serve the north and north-west of Île-de-France region with Transilien ...

suburban rail line at Colombes, Le Stade,

and Gare Les Vallées.

Education

The commune has 21 preschools and 19 elementary schools. Secondary schools: * Junior high schools: Robert Paparemborde, Marguerite Duras, Gay Lussac, Moulin Joly, Jean-Baptiste Clément, LakanalÉtablissements d'enseignement publics sécondaires (collèges)
" Académie de Versailles. Retrieved on September 7, 2016.Collège Robert Paparemborde
"

French Ministry of Education French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

. Retrieved on September 7, 2016.--> * Senior high schools:

Lycée Guy de Maupassant In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

, Lycee Polyvalent Claude Garamont,

Lycee Polyvalent Anatole de France In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

Personalities

Quilapayún Quilapayún () are a folk music group from Chile and among the longest lasting and most influential ambassadors of the ''Nueva Canción Chilena'' movement and genre. Formed during the mid-1960s, the group became inseparable with the revolution th ...

, Chilean music group forced into exile in France after the 1973 Coup. They settled in Colombes. * Jordan Aboudou, basketball player *

Lens Aboudou Lens Aboudou (born February 9, 1990) is a French basketball player who currently plays for JDA Dijon Basket Jeanne d'Arc Dijon Basket, commonly known as JDA Dijon Basket or simply Dijon, is a professional basketball club from the city of Dijon, ...

, basketball player * Josue Albert, footballer *

Bryan Alceus Bryan Alceus (born 1 February 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Cypriot First Division club Olympiakos Nicosia, on loan from Liga I club FC Argeș Pitești. Born in France, he plays for the Haiti national team. Cl ...

, footballer *

Mame-Ibra Anne Mame-Ibra Anne (born 7 November 1989 in Colombes) is a French sprinter specialising in the 400 metres. He won the bronze medal at the 2013 Mediterranean Games The 2013 Mediterranean Games ( tr, 2013 Akdeniz Oyunları), officially known a ...

, athlete * Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, footballer * Kelly Berville, footballer * Zoumana Camara, footballer * Pierre Clayette, artist * Mathieu Cossou, karateka *

Simone Jorry Simone may refer to: * Simone (given name), a feminine (or Italian masculine) given name of Hebrew origin * Simone (surname), an Italian surname Simone may also refer to: * ''Simone'' (1918 film), a French silent drama film * ''Simone'' (1926 fi ...

, deaf/hoh rights activist *

Marie-Antoinette Katoto Marie-Antoinette Oda Katoto () (born 1 November 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for Division 1 Féminine club Paris Saint-Germain and the France national team. A youth academy graduate of Paris Saint-Germain, s ...

, footballer * Claude Mérelle, actress *

Eliaquim Mangala Eliaquim Hans Mangala (born 13 February 1991) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back. Born in France, he moved to Belgium as a child and began his career there at Standard Liège, going onto Porto in 2011 where he won c ...

, footballer * Samuel Nadeau, basketball player *

Alexandre Postel Alexandre Postel (born 29 April 1982, in Colombes) is a French writer. In 2013 he was awarded the as well as the Prix Goncourt du premier roman for ''Un homme effacé'', published by éditions Gallimard. A former student at the École normale ...

(born 1982), writer * Steven Nzonzi, footballer * Kevin Thalien, basketball player * Elodie Thomis, footballer *

Axel Tony Axel Tony (born in Colombes in 1984) is a French singer of mixed Cameroonian / Martinique / Vietnamese origin. He is signed to Universal Music France. Career Axel Tony was born to a Cameroonian father and a Martiniquais-born mother (of Vietname ...

, singer *

Jonathan Toto Jonathan Toto (born 30 March 1990) is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward. An Metz youth product, Toto began his senior career in Cameroon with Canon Yaoundé before moving to Italy to sign for Legnano. He moved t ...

, footballer *

Eddy Viator Eddy Viator (born 2 June 1982) is a footballer who plays as a defender for Guadeloupe club Red Star Baie-Mahault. Club career Born in Colombes, France, Viator began his career with LB Châteauroux. After only one game in 2002–03, he went ...

, footballer *

Rama Yade Rama Yade (born Mame Ramatoulaye Yade; 13 December 1976) is a Senegalese-born French politician and the author of several books. She served as the French Secretary of Human Rights from 2007 to 2009, and the Secretary of Sports from 2009 to 2010 ...

, politician, moved into a council flat in Colombes with her mother and three sisters at the age of fourteen.Rama Yade: The political star who's eclipsing Sarko
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 14 April 2009 *

pierpoljak Pierre-Mathieu Vilmet (; born September 7, 1964 in Paris), professionally known as Pierpoljak, is a French reggae and pop singer. Biography Pierre Vilmet was born in Paris and grew up in the Parisian suburbs, first in Savigny-sur-Orge and then i ...

, reggae singer

Sport

The stadium was built in 1907. Officially named the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, the Olympic Stadium of Colombes was the site of the opening ceremony and several events of the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The op ...

. The arena's capacity was increased to 60,000 for the 1938

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

. The stadium lost its importance after the restoration in 1972 of Paris' 49,000-seat

Parc des Princes Parc des Princes () is an all-seater stadium, all-seater Association football, football stadium in Paris, France, in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin ...

. In the 1990s, three of the four grandstands were torn down due to decay and the stadium's capacity was down to 7,000; later renovations have brought the current capacity to 14,000. Through November 2017, it had been home to the

Racing 92 Racing 92 () is a French rugby union club based in suburban Paris that was formed in 2001 with the collaboration of the Racing Club de France and US Métro. They were called Racing Métro 92 between 2001 and 2015, when they changed the name ...

rugby club, currently playing in France's

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

, but Racing has since moved to the new

U Arena U or u, is the twenty-first and sixth-to-last letter and fifth vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''u'' (pro ...

Nanterre Nanterre (, ) is the prefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department in the western suburbs of Paris. It is located some northwest of the centre of Paris. In 2018, the commune had a population of 96,807. The eastern part of Nanterre, bordering t ...

. The

RCF Paris Racing Club de France Football (, also known as Racing Paris, RCF Paris, Matra Racing, Racing Club, or Racing) is a French association football club based in Colombes, a suburb of Paris. Racing was founded in 1882 as a multi-discipline spo ...

football club, which plays in the fourth division, remains at Yves-du-Manoir. The stadium will be the field hockey venue at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 2024), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la XXXIIIe Olympiade, links=no) and also known as Paris 2024, is an upcoming international multi-sport event that is s ...

Twin towns

Frankenthal Frankenthal (Pfalz) ( pfl, Frongedahl) is a town in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. History Frankenthal was first mentioned in 772. In 1119 an Augustinian monastery was built here, the ruins of which — known, af ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

References

External links

Official website
*
Colombes in postal card
(Colombes philatelic society) *

''

Chariots of Fire ''Chariots of Fire'' is a 1981 British historical sports drama film directed by Hugh Hudson, written by Colin Welland and produced by David Puttnam. It is based on the true story of two British athletes in the 1924 Olympics: Eric Liddell ...

'' stadium reprieved {{Authority control Communes of Hauts-de-Seine Cities in Île-de-France

Name

History

Population

Geography

Climate

Administration

Transport

Education

Personalities

Sport

Twin towns

See also

References

External links