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Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
and
Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name d ...
, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, southwest of
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
, northeast of
Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the ...
. The City of Lyon proper had a population of 522,969 in 2019 within its small municipal territory of , but together with its
suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separ ...
s and exurbs the Lyon metropolitan area had a population of 2,280,845 that same year, the second most populated in France. Lyon and 58 suburban municipalities have formed since 2015 the Metropolis of Lyon, a directly elected metropolitan authority now in charge of most urban issues, with a population of 1,411,571 in 2019. Lyon is the prefecture of the
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Au ...
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
and seat of the
Departmental Council ''Departmental'' is a 1980 Australian TV movie based on a play by Mervyn Rutherford. It was part of the ABC's Australian Theatre Festival.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p43 Reviews were poor ...
of
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
(whose jurisdiction, however, no longer extends over the Metropolis of Lyon since 2015). The capital of the
Gauls The Gauls ( la, Galli; grc, Γαλάται, ''Galátai'') were a group of Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age and the Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). They sp ...
during the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
, Lyon is the seat of an
archbishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...
whose holder bears the title of Primate of the Gauls. Lyon became a major economic hub during the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
. The city is recognised for its cuisine and gastronomy, as well as historical and architectural landmarks; as such, the districts of Old Lyon, the Fourvière hill, the Presqu'île and the slopes of the
Croix-Rousse La Croix-Rousse is a hill high in the city of Lyon, France, as well as the name of a neighborhood located on this hill. The neighborhood is divided into les pentes (slopes, belonging to the city's 1st arrondissement) and le plateau (atop the hi ...
are inscribed on the
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
. Lyon was historically an important area for the production and weaving of silk. Lyon played a significant role in the history of cinema since
Auguste and Louis Lumière The Lumière brothers (, ; ), Auguste Lumière, Auguste Marie Louis Nicolas Lumière (19 October 1862 – 10 April 1954) and Louis Lumière, Louis Jean Lumière (5 October 1864 – 6 June 1948), were French manufacturers of photography equipment ...
invented the cinematograph there. The city is also known for its light festival, the
Fête des Lumières The Festival of Lights (french: Fête des lumières) in Lyon, France, is a popular event that originally aimed at expressing gratitude toward Mary, mother of Jesus around December 8 of each year. This unique Lyonnaise tradition dictates that ever ...
, which begins every 8 December and lasts for four days, earning Lyon the title of "Capital of Lights". Economically, Lyon is a major centre for banking, chemical, pharmaceutical and biotech industries. The city contains a significant software industry with a particular focus on video games; in recent years it has fostered a growing local start-up sector. The home of renowned universities and higher education schools, Lyon is the second-largest student city in France, with a university population of nearly 200,000 students within the Metropolis of Lyon. Lyon hosts the international headquarters of
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cr ...
, the
International Agency for Research on Cancer The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC; french: Centre International de Recherche sur le Cancer, CIRC) is an intergovernmental agency forming part of the World Health Organization of the United Nations. Its role is to conduct and ...
, as well as
Euronews Euronews (styled on-air in lowercase as euronews) is a European television news network, headquartered in Lyon, France. The network began broadcasting on 1 January 1993 and covers world news from a European perspective. The majority of Eurone ...
. According to the Globalization and World Rankings Research Institute, Lyon is considered a Beta city, . It ranked second in France and 40th globally in Mercer's 2019 liveability rankings.


History


Ancient Lyon

According to the historian
Dio Cassius Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history on ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...
, in 43 BC, the
Roman Senate The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...
ordered the creation of a settlement for Roman refugees of war with the Allobroges. These refugees had been expelled from Vienne and were now encamped at the confluence of the
Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name d ...
and
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
rivers. The foundation was built on Fourvière hill and officially called ''Colonia Copia Felix Munatia'', a name invoking prosperity and the blessing of the gods. The city became increasingly referred to as ''
Lugdunum Lugdunum (also spelled Lugudunum, ; modern Lyon, France) was an important Roman city in Gaul, established on the current site of Lyon. The Roman city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, but continued an existing Gallic settle ...
'' (and occasionally ''Lugudunum''). The earliest translation of this Gaulish place-name as "Desired Mountain" is offered by the 9th-century '' Endlicher Glossary''. In contrast, some modern scholars have proposed a Gaulish hill-fort named Lug unon, after the
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...
god Lugus (cognate with
Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writte ...
'' Lugh'', Modern Irish ''Lú''), and ''dúnon'' (hill-fort). The Romans recognised that Lugdunum's strategic location at the convergence of two navigable rivers made it a natural communications hub. The city became the starting point of main
Roman roads Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...
in the area, and it quickly became the capital of the province, Gallia Lugdunensis. Two Emperors were born in this city:
Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor ...
, whose speech is preserved in the Lyon Tablet in which he justifies the nomination of Gallic Senators, and
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor ...
.
Early Christians Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewis ...
in Lyon were martyred for their beliefs under the reigns of various Roman emperors, most notably
Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good E ...
and
Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...
. Local saints from this period include Blandina, Pothinus, and Epipodius, among others. The Greek
Irenaeus Irenaeus (; grc-gre, Εἰρηναῖος ''Eirēnaios''; c. 130 – c. 202 AD) was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the de ...
was the second bishop of Lyon during the latter part of the second century. To this day, the archbishop of Lyon is still referred to as "'' Primat des Gaules''". Burgundians fleeing the destruction of Worms by the
Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...
in 437 were re-settled in eastern Gaul. In 443 the Romans established the Kingdom of the Burgundians, and Lugdunum became its capital in 461. In 843, under the
Treaty of Verdun The Treaty of Verdun (), agreed in , divided the Frankish Empire into three kingdoms among the surviving sons of the emperor Louis I, the son and successor of Charlemagne. The treaty was concluded following almost three years of civil war and ...
, Lyon went to the
Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
Lothair I Lothair I or Lothar I ( Dutch and Medieval Latin: ''Lotharius''; German: ''Lothar''; French: ''Lothaire''; Italian: ''Lotario'') (795 – 29 September 855) was emperor (817–855, co-ruling with his father until 840), and the governor of Bava ...
. It later was made part of the
Kingdom of Arles The Kingdom of Burgundy, known from the 12th century as the Kingdom of Arles, also referred to in various context as Arelat, the Kingdom of Arles and Vienne, or Kingdom of Burgundy-Provence, was a realm established in 933 by the merger of the king ...
which was incorporated into the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...
in 1033. Lyon did not come under French control until the 14th century.


Modern Lyon

Fernand Braudel remarked, "Historians of Lyon are not sufficiently aware of the bi-polarity between Paris and Lyon, which is a constant structure in French development...from the late Middle Ages to the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
". In the late 15th century, the fairs introduced by Italian merchants made Lyon the economic counting house of France. Even the ''Bourse'' (treasury), built in 1749, resembled a public bazaar where accounts were settled in the open air. When international banking moved to
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
, then
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
, Lyon remained the banking centre of France. During the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
, the city's development was driven by the silk trade, which strengthened its ties to Italy. Italian influence on Lyon's architecture is still visible among historic buildings. In the late 1400s and 1500s Lyon was also a key centre of literary activity and book publishing, both of French writers (such as
Maurice Scève Maurice Scève (c. 1501–c. 1564), was a French poet active in Lyon during the Renaissance period. He was the centre of the Lyonnese côterie that elaborated the theory of spiritual love, derived partly from Plato and partly from Petrarch. This ...
, Antoine Heroet, and
Louise Labé Louise Charlin Perrin Labé, ( 1524 – 25 April 1566), also identified as La Belle Cordière (The Beautiful Ropemaker), was a feminist French poet of the Renaissance born in Lyon, the daughter of wealthy ropemaker Pierre Charly and his second wif ...
) and of Italians in exile (such as
Luigi Alamanni Luigi Alamanni (sometimes spelt Alemanni) (6 March 149518 April 1556) was an Italian poet and statesman. He was regarded as a prolific and versatile poet. He was credited with introducing the epigram into Italian poetry. Biography Alamanni was ...
and Gian Giorgio Trissino). In 1572, Lyon was a scene of mass violence by Catholics against Protestant
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
s in the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre. Two centuries later, Lyon was again convulsed by violence 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 conside ...
, when the citizenry rose up against the
National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year Nation ...
and supported the
Girondins The Girondins ( , ), or Girondists, were members of a loosely knit political faction during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active in the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention. Together with the Montagnard ...
. The city was besieged by Revolutionary armies for over two months before it surrendered in October 1793. Many buildings were destroyed, especially around the
Place Bellecour Place Bellecour is a large square in the centre of Lyon, France, to the north of the Ainay district. Measuring 312 m by 200 m (62,000 m² or 15 acres), it is one of the largest open squares (without any patches of greenery or trees) in ...
, and Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois and
Joseph Fouché Joseph Fouché, 1st Duc d'Otrante, 1st Comte Fouché (, 21 May 1759 – 25 December 1820) was a French statesman, revolutionary, and Minister of Police under First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte, who later became a subordinate of Emperor Napoleon. He ...
administered the execution of more than 2,000 people. The Convention ordered that its name be changed to "Liberated City", and a plaque was erected that proclaimed "Lyons made war on Liberty; Lyons no longer exists". A decade later,
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
ordered the reconstruction of all the buildings demolished during that period. The convention was not the only target within Lyon during the French Revolution. After the Convention faded into history, the
French Directory The Directory (also called Directorate, ) was the governing five-member committee in the French First Republic from 2 November 1795 until 9 November 1799, when it was overthrown by Napoleon Bonaparte in the Coup of 18 Brumaire and replaced b ...
appeared and days after the September 4, 1797
Coup of 18 Fructidor The Coup of 18 Fructidor, Year V (4 September 1797 in the French Republican Calendar), was a seizure of power in France by members of the Directory, the government of the French First Republic, with support from the French military. The coup wa ...
, a Directory's commissioner was assassinated in Lyon. The city became an important industrial town in the 19th century. In 1831 and 1834, the ''
canut The canuts () were Lyonnais silk workers, often working on Jacquard looms. They were primarily found in the Croix-Rousse neighbourhood of Lyon in the 19th century. Although the term generally refers to Lyonnais silk workers, silk workers in the ...
s'' (silk workers) of Lyon staged two major uprisings for better working conditions and pay. In 1862, the first of Lyon's extensive network of funicular railways began operation. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, Lyon was a centre for the occupying
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
forces, including Klaus Barbie, the infamous "Butcher of Lyon". However, the city was also a stronghold of the
French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...
, the many secret passages known as '' traboules'', enabled people to escape
Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...
raids. On 3 September 1944, Lyon was liberated by the
1st Free French Division The 1st Free French Division (french: 1re Division Française Libre, 1re DFL) was one of the principal units of the Free French Forces (FFL) during World War II, renowned for having fought the Battle of Bir Hakeim. Consisting of troops from ...
and the
Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur The French Forces of the Interior (french: Forces françaises de l'Intérieur) were French resistance fighters in the later stages of World War II. Charles de Gaulle used it as a formal name for the resistance fighters. The change in designatio ...
. The city is now home to a Resistance museum.


Geography

The Rhône and Saône converge to the south of the historic city centre, forming a peninsula – the "'' Presqu'île''" – bounded by two large hills to the west and north and a large plain eastward.
Place Bellecour Place Bellecour is a large square in the centre of Lyon, France, to the north of the Ainay district. Measuring 312 m by 200 m (62,000 m² or 15 acres), it is one of the largest open squares (without any patches of greenery or trees) in ...
is located on the Presqu'île between the two rivers and is the third-largest public square in France. The broad, pedestrian-only Rue de la République leads north from Place Bellecour. The northern hill is
La Croix-Rousse La Croix-Rousse is a hill high in the city of Lyon, France, as well as the name of a neighborhood located on this hill. The neighborhood is divided into les pentes (slopes, belonging to the city's 1st arrondissement) and le plateau (atop the hi ...
, known as "the hill that works" because it is traditionally home to many small silk workshops, an industry for which the city has long been renowned. The western hill is Fourvière, known as "the hill that prays" because it is the location for Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, several convents, and
Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdio ...
residence. The district,
Vieux Lyon The Vieux Lyon ( en, Old Lyon) is the largest Renaissance district of Lyon. In 1964, Vieux-Lyon, the city's oldest district, became the first site in France to be protected under the Malraux law to protect France's cultural sites. Covering an a ...
, also hosts the Tour métallique (a highly visible TV tower, replicating the last stage of the
Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; french: links=yes, tour Eiffel ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower. Locally nicknamed ...
) and one of the city's railways. Fourvière, along with portions of the Presqu'île and much of La Croix-Rousse, is designated as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
. East of the Rhône from the Presqu'île is a large flat area upon which sits much of modern Lyon and contains most of the city's population. Situated in this area is
La Part-Dieu Part-Dieu () is an area of Lyon Metropolis. It is also the second largest tertiary district in France, after La Défense in Greater Paris, with over 1,150,000 m2 of office and service space, along with 45,000 service sector jobs, 2,500 compa ...
urban centre, which clusters the landmark structures Tour Incity,
Tour Part-Dieu The Tour Part-Dieu (formerly Tour du Crédit Lyonnais, or colloquially Le Crayon, or The Pencil) is a skyscraper in Lyon, France. The building is tall, in La Part-Dieu district, with 42 floors. The building was completed in 1977. It currently ...
,
Tour Oxygène The Tour Oxygène (Oxygen Tower in English) is a skyscraper which rises 28 levels in the district of La Part-Dieu in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon, France. It forms part of the Oxygen Project, which includes the office tower and a shopping cent ...
, and Tour Swiss Life, as well as the city's primary railway station, Gare de Lyon-Part-Dieu. North of this district lays the sixth
arrondissement An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements ...
, which is home to one of Europe's largest urban parks, the
Parc de la Tête d'or The Parc de la Tête d'or (English: "Park of the Golden Head") is a large urban park in Lyon, France, with an area of approximately . Located in the northern part of the 6th arrondissement, it features the Jardin botanique de Lyon, as well as a ...
, as well as Lycée du Parc and
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cr ...
's world headquarters.


Climate

Lyon has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
( Köppen: ''Cfa''), bordering on an
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 ...
(''Cfb'') due to the higher average temperature being around 22 °C. But in modified classifications such as that of
Trewartha Trewartha and Andrewartha are Cornish family names (and placename, Dexter). There are places called Trewartha in the parishes of Merther, St Agnes, St Neot and Veryan. According to the ''Handbook of Cornish Names'' by G. Pawley White, "Tre ...
, France's third largest city has an
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 ...
(''Do''). The mean temperature in Lyon in the coldest month is in January and in the warmest month in July is . Precipitation is adequate year-round, at an average of , but the winter months are the driest. The highest recorded temperature was on 13 August 2003 while the lowest recorded temperature was on 22 December 1938.


Administration


Commune

Like Paris and
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, the commune (municipality) of Lyon is divided into a number of municipal arrondissements, each of which is identified by a number and has its own council and town hall. Five arrondissements were originally created in 1852, when three neighbouring communes (La Croix-Rousse, La Guillotière, and Vaise) were annexed by Lyon. Between 1867 and 1959, the third arrondissement (which originally covered the whole of the Left Bank of the
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
) was split three times, creating a new arrondissement in each case. Then, in 1963, the commune of Saint-Rambert-l'Île-Barbe was annexed to Lyon's fifth arrondissement. A year later, in 1964, the fifth was split to create Lyon's 9th – and, to date, final – arrondissement. Within each arrondissement, the recognisable ''quartiers'' or neighbourhoods are: * 1st arrondissement: Slopes of
La Croix-Rousse La Croix-Rousse is a hill high in the city of Lyon, France, as well as the name of a neighborhood located on this hill. The neighborhood is divided into les pentes (slopes, belonging to the city's 1st arrondissement) and le plateau (atop the hi ...
, Terreaux, Martinière/St-Vincent * 2nd arrondissement:
Cordeliers The Society of the Friends of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (french: Société des Amis des droits de l'homme et du citoyen), mainly known as Cordeliers Club (french: Club des Cordeliers), was a populist political club during the French ...
, Bellecour,
Ainay Ainay is an area within the Presqu'ile district in the 2nd arrondissement of Lyon, to the south of Place Bellecour and the north of Perrache. It is best known for its Romanesque church, the Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay. A high-class area, bo ...
, Perrache, Confluence, Sainte-Blandine * 3rd arrondissement: Guillotière (north), Préfecture,
Part-Dieu Part-Dieu () is an area of Lyon Metropolis. It is also the second largest tertiary district in France, after La Défense in Greater Paris, with over 1,150,000 m2 of office and service space, along with 45,000 service sector jobs, 2,500 compani ...
, Villette, Dauphiné/Sans Souci, Montchat, Grange Blanche (north), Monplaisir (north) * 4th arrondissement: Plateau de
la Croix-Rousse La Croix-Rousse is a hill high in the city of Lyon, France, as well as the name of a neighborhood located on this hill. The neighborhood is divided into les pentes (slopes, belonging to the city's 1st arrondissement) and le plateau (atop the hi ...
, Serin * 5th arrondissement:
Vieux Lyon The Vieux Lyon ( en, Old Lyon) is the largest Renaissance district of Lyon. In 1964, Vieux-Lyon, the city's oldest district, became the first site in France to be protected under the Malraux law to protect France's cultural sites. Covering an a ...
( Saint-Paul, Saint-Jean, Saint-Georges), Saint-Just, Saint-Irénée, Fourvière, Point du Jour, Ménival, Battières, Champvert (south) * 6th arrondissement:
Brotteaux Brotteaux is a neighborhood in the 6th arrondissement of Lyon. It is situated between the Rhône and the track railway which leads to the Gare de la Part-Dieu. The urbanization of this area began in the late eighteenth century under the leadershi ...
, Bellecombe,
Parc de la Tête d'or The Parc de la Tête d'or (English: "Park of the Golden Head") is a large urban park in Lyon, France, with an area of approximately . Located in the northern part of the 6th arrondissement, it features the Jardin botanique de Lyon, as well as a ...
, Cité Internationale * 7th arrondissement: Guillotière (south), Jean Macé, Gerland * 8th arrondissement: Monplaisir (south),
Bachut Le Bachut is a quarter in the 8th arrondissement of Lyon. It is bisected the avenue Berthelot and rue Marius Berliet. Served by the tram, it is connected to the Presqu'île, to the Hôpital Édouard-Herriot and the university campus of Bron. In M ...
, États-Unis, Grand Trou/Moulin à Vent, Grange Blanche (south),
Laënnec Laënnec is a quarter of the 8th arrondissement of Lyon, in France. It is served by the eponymous station of the Line D of the Lyon Metro, which was opened on 11 December 1992 and had 132,316 passengers per month in 2006.Laënnec statioFerro-lyon. ...
, Mermoz, Monplaisir-la-Plaine * 9th arrondissement:
Vaise Vaise is a neighborhood of the City of Lyon ( France), located along the Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and ...
, Duchère, Rochecardon, St-Rambert-l'Île-Barbe, Gorge de Loup, Observance, Champvert (north) Geographically, Lyon's two main rivers, the Saône and the Rhône, divide the arrondissements into three groups: * To the west of the Saône, the fifth arrondissement covers the old city of Vieux Lyon, Fourvière hill and the plateau beyond. The 9th is immediately to the north, and stretches from Gorge de Loup, through Vaise to the neighbouring suburbs of Écully, Champagne-au-Mont-d'Or, Saint-Didier-au-Mont-d'Or, Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d'Or and Collonges-au-Mont-d'Or. * Between the two rivers, on the Presqu'île, are the second, first, and fourth arrondissements. The second includes most of the city centre, Bellecour and Perrache railway station, and reaches as far as the confluence of the two rivers. The first is directly to the north of the second and covers part of the city centre (including the Hôtel de Ville) and the slopes of La Croix-Rousse. To the north of the Boulevard is the fourth arrondissement, which covers the Plateau of La Croix-Rousse, up to its boundary with the commune of Caluire-et-Cuire. * To the east of the Rhône, are the third, sixth, seventh, and eighth arrondissements.


Mayors

This is a list of mayors of the commune of Lyon since the end of the 19th century.


Metropolis

Since 2015, the commune of Lyon ( in land area) and 58 suburban communes have formed the Metropolis of Lyon ( in land area), a directly elected metropolitan authority now in charge of most urban issues. The Metropolis of Lyon is the only metropolitan authority in France which is a territorial collectivity, on par with French communes and
departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
. Its metropolitan council was for the first time directly elected by
universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...
in 2020 within 14 electoral wards, the only directly elected metropolitan council in France. The 14 electoral wards are the following (see map for location): The six wards with names starting with "Lyon" are all located within the commune of Lyon. The
Villeurbanne Villeurbanne (; frp, Velorbana) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after ...
ward is coterminous with the namesake commune. All other seven wards each group various suburban communes. The division of the Metropolis of Lyon in large electoral wards often grouping various communes and dividing the commune of Lyon into six wards was criticized by the suburban mayors, as it ended the rule of 'one commune, one metropolitan councilor'. The goal of this electoral division of the metropolis was to focus metropolitan elections more on metropolitan issues than parochial communal issues, and ensure the 'one person, one vote' rule be respected, by creating electoral wards of more homogeneous population sizes. Opponents said it diluted the voice of the small suburban communes, which are now part of large electoral wards and do not each possess a representative in the metropolitan council anymore.


Presidents of the Metropolitan Council

The two first presidents of the Metropolis of Lyon's metropolitan council were chosen by indirectly elected metropolitan councilors. The current president since July 2020 was elected by new metropolitan councilors following their election by
universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...
in March (1st round) and June (2nd round) 2020, the first direct election of a metropolitan council in France.


Main sights


Antiquity

* The Roman ruins on the hillside near the Fourvière Basilica, with the
Ancient Theatre of Fourvière The Ancient Theatre of Fourvière (french: Théâtre antique de Lyon) is a Roman theatre in Lyon, France. It was built on the hill of Fourvière, which is located in the center of the Roman city. The theatre is part of a UNESCO World Heritage S ...
, the
Odeon of Lyon The Odeon of Lyon (french: Odéon antique de Lyon) is a small ancient Roman theatre (an odeon) near the summit of the Fourvière hill in Lyon, France. It forms a pair with the Ancient Theatre of Fourvière, one of only two such pairs in Gaul ( ...
and the accompanying Gallo-Roman museum * Amphitheatre of the Three Gauls – ruins of a Roman amphitheatre.


Middle Ages and Renaissance

* Cathedral of St. John, a medieval church with architectural elements of the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, also the principal religious structure in the city and the seat of the Archbishop of Lyon * Basilica of St-Martin-d'Ainay, one of the rare surviving Romanesque basilica-style churches in Lyon * Église Saint-Paul, Romanesque (12th and 13th century) and Gothic (15th–16th century) church * Église Saint-Bonaventure, 14th- and 15th-century Gothic church * Église Saint-Nizier, Gothic church from the 15th century, having a doorway carved in the 16th century by Philibert Delorme *
Vieux Lyon The Vieux Lyon ( en, Old Lyon) is the largest Renaissance district of Lyon. In 1964, Vieux-Lyon, the city's oldest district, became the first site in France to be protected under the Malraux law to protect France's cultural sites. Covering an a ...
(English: Old Lyon) area, Medieval and Renaissance quarter of the town, with shops, dining and cobbled streets * The many Renaissance '' hôtels particuliers'' of the Old Lyon quarter, such as the ''Hôtel de Bullioud'', were also built by Philibert Delorme


17th and 18th centuries

*
City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
on the
Place des Terreaux The Place des Terreaux is a square located in the centre of Lyon, France, on the Presqu'île between the Rhône and the Saône rivers, at the foot of the hill of La Croix-Rousse in the 1st arrondissement. It borders both the Hôtel de Ville a ...
, built by architects
Jules Hardouin-Mansart Jules Hardouin-Mansart (; 16 April 1646 – 11 May 1708) was a French Baroque architect and builder whose major work included the Place des Victoires (1684–1690); Place Vendôme (1690); the domed chapel of Les Invalides (1690), and the Gran ...
and
Robert de Cotte Robert de Cotte (1656 – 15 July 1735) was a French architect-administrator, under whose design control of the royal buildings of France from 1699, the earliest notes presaging the Rococo style were introduced. First a pupil of Jules Har ...
* Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon, fine arts museum housed in a former convent of the 17th century, including the Baroque ''chapelle Saint-Pierre'' * Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon (17th and 18th century), historical hospital with a baroque chapel *
Temple du Change The Temple du Change or Loge du Change, formerly used for the stock exchange of Lyon, stands in Vieux Lyon (5th arrondissement of Lyon). It was originally built after plans by architect Simon Gourdet between 1631 and 1653, then rebuilt under the d ...
(17th and 18th century), former stock exchange of Lyon, Protestant temple since the 18th century *
Place Bellecour Place Bellecour is a large square in the centre of Lyon, France, to the north of the Ainay district. Measuring 312 m by 200 m (62,000 m² or 15 acres), it is one of the largest open squares (without any patches of greenery or trees) in ...
, one of the largest town squares in Europe * Chapelle de la Trinité (1622), the first Baroque chapel built in Lyon, and part of the former École de la Trinité, now
Collège-lycée Ampère The Collège-lycée Ampère is a famous school located in the 2nd arrondissement of Lyon. History It was founded in 1519 by members of the Brotherhood of the Trinity. It was then known under the name of Collège de la Trinité. Under this name it ...
* Église Saint-Polycarpe (1665–1670), Classical church * Église Saint-Just (16th to 18th century), Classical church *
Saint-Bruno des Chartreux The Church of Saint-Bruno des Chartreux (french: Église Saint-Bruno des Chartreux, or the ''Church of Saint Bruno of the Carthusians'') is a Roman Catholic church located in Lyon, France. Until the French Revolution, it was the church of Lyon ...
(17th and 18th century), church, masterpiece of Baroque architecture * Église Notre Dame Saint-Vincent (18th century), Neo-classical church


19th century and modern city

*
Opéra Nouvel The Opéra Nouvel (Nouvel Opera House) in Lyon, France, is the home of the Opéra National de Lyon. The original opera house was re-designed by the distinguished French architect, Jean Nouvel between 1985 and 1993 in association with the agency o ...
(1831), renovated in 1993 by Jean Nouvel *
Théâtre des Célestins The Théâtre des Célestins is a theatre building on Place des Célestins in Lyon, France. It was designed by Gaspard André, and inaugurated in 1877, then in 2005. Alongside the Comédie-Française and the théâtre de l'Odéon, it is one of f ...
(1877), designed by Gaspard André * Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, large 19th-century basilica on the top of Fourvière Hill * Tour métallique de Fourvière (1894) * ''La Mouche'' Cattle Market and Abattoir (1914, 1928), designed by Tony Garnier *
Sainte Marie de La Tourette Sainte Marie de La Tourette is a Dominican Order priory, located on a hillside near Lyon, France, designed by the architect Le Corbusier, the architect’s final building. The design of the building began in May 1953 and completed in 1961. The comm ...
monastery (1960) designed by
Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , , ), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture. He was ...
* Saint-Exupéry International Airport (formerly Satolas Airport), designed by Guillaume Gilbert *
Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry Gare is the word for "station" in French and related languages, commonly meaning railway station Gare can refer to: People * Gare (surname), surname * The Gare Family, fictional characters in the novel '' Wild Geese'' by Martha Ostenso Places * ...
(1994) by
Santiago Calatrava Santiago Calatrava Valls (born 28 July 1951) is a Spanish architect, structural engineer, sculptor and painter, particularly known for his bridges supported by single leaning pylons, and his railway stations, stadiums, and museums, whose sculp ...
* Palais des congrès de Lyon (1998), designed by
Renzo Piano Renzo Piano (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian architect. His notable buildings include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (with Richard Rogers, 1977), The Shard in London (2012), the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City (2 ...
and a group of buildings for various functions *
Tour du Crédit Lyonnais The Tour Part-Dieu (formerly Tour du Crédit Lyonnais, or colloquially Le Crayon, or The Pencil) is a skyscraper in Lyon, France. The building is tall, in La Part-Dieu district, with 42 floors. The building was completed in 1977. It currently ...
*
Tour Oxygène The Tour Oxygène (Oxygen Tower in English) is a skyscraper which rises 28 levels in the district of La Part-Dieu in the 3rd arrondissement of Lyon, France. It forms part of the Oxygen Project, which includes the office tower and a shopping cent ...
* Tour Incity


Museums

* Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon (''Fine Arts Museum''), main museum of the city and one of the larger art galleries in France. Housed in the Palais Saint Pierre, a former 17th-century convent, it displays a major collection of paintings by artists (including
Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed wit ...
;
Paolo Veronese Paolo Caliari (152819 April 1588), known as Paolo Veronese ( , also , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter based in Venice, known for extremely large history paintings of religion and mythology, such as '' The Wedding at Cana'' (1563) and ''T ...
;
Nicolas Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for ...
;
Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...
;
Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...
; Zurbaran; Canaletto; Delacroix; Monet;
Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fro ...
;
Van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inc ...
; Cézanne;
Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known primar ...
;
Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
;
Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both ...
...); collections of sculptures, drawings and printings, decorative arts, Roman and Greek antiquities; the second largest collection of Egyptian antiquities in France after that of the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the '' Venus de Milo''. A central ...
; and a medal cabinet of 50.000 medals and coins. * The Gallo-Roman Museum displaying many valuable objects and artworks found on the site of Roman Lyon (Lugdunum) such as Circus Games Mosaic, Coligny calendar and the Taurobolic Altar * Centre d'histoire de la résistance et de la déportation * Musée des Confluences, new museum of sciences and anthropology, which opened its doors on 20 December 2014 * La Sucrière, contemporary art centre * Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon houses the "Musée des Hospices Civils", a permanent exhibit tracing the history and practice of medicine from the Middle Ages to modern times * Musée des Tissus et des Arts décoratifs, decorative arts and textile museum, which is one of the world's larger textile collections with 2.5 million works * Musée d'art contemporain de Lyon, contemporary art museum * Musée de L'imprimerie, printing museum *
Musée Gadagne The Musée Gadagne is a museum located in the center of the Vieux Lyon, in the Saint-Jean quarter, in the 5th arrondissement of Lyon. It is composed of the Musée d'Histoire de Lyon (Museum of Lyon History) and the Musée des Marionnettes du monde ...
, museum of the history of Lyon housed in a historic building in Vieux Lyon, which includes a large collection of marionettes * Musée des Automates, museum of automated puppets in Vieux Lyon, open since 1991 * Musée Miniature & Cinéma, museum featuring miniature movie sets, movie props, and special effects


Parks and gardens

*
Parc de la Tête d'or The Parc de la Tête d'or (English: "Park of the Golden Head") is a large urban park in Lyon, France, with an area of approximately . Located in the northern part of the 6th arrondissement, it features the Jardin botanique de Lyon, as well as a ...
, aka Golden Head Park, in central Lyon is the largest urban park in France at . Located in the 6th arrondissement, it features a large lake on which boating takes place during the summer months. *
Jardin botanique de Lyon The Jardin botanique de Lyon (English: Botanical Garden of Lyon), also known as the Jardin botanique du Parc de la Tête d'Or (Botanical Garden of the Golden Head), is an municipal botanical garden located in the Parc de la Tête d'or in the 6th ...
(), included in the
Parc de la Tête d'Or The Parc de la Tête d'or (English: "Park of the Golden Head") is a large urban park in Lyon, France, with an area of approximately . Located in the northern part of the 6th arrondissement, it features the Jardin botanique de Lyon, as well as a ...
, is a municipal botanical garden and is open weekdays without charge. The garden was established in 1857 as a successor to earlier botanical gardens dating to 1796, and now describes itself as France's largest municipal botanical garden. * Parc de Gerland, in the south of the city () *
Parc des hauteurs Parc des Hauteurs () is an urban park on Fourvière hill in Lyon, France. It encompasses the public spaces between the basilique de Fourvière and Loyasse cemetery. History Throughout the 20th century, urban planning documents mention vari ...
, in Fourvières * Parc de Miribel-Jonage () * Parc de Lacroix-Laval () * Parc de Parilly ()


Economy

The GDP of Lyon was 74 billion euro in 2012, making it the second richest city in France after Paris. Lyon and its region
Rhône-Alpes Rhône-Alpes () was an administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it is part of the new region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the river Rhône ...
represent one of the most important economies in Europe and, according to Loughborough University, can be compared to Philadelphia, Mumbai or Athens with regard to its international position. The city of Lyon is working in partnership to more easily enable the establishment of new headquarters in the territory (ADERLY, Chambre du commerce et d'industrie,
Grand Lyon The Metropolis of Lyon (french: Métropole de Lyon), also known as ("Greater Lyon"), is a French territorial collectivity located in the east-central region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is a directly elected metropolitan authority encompassing t ...
...). High-tech industries such as biotechnology, software development, video game ( Arkane Studios,
Ivory Tower An ivory tower is a metaphorical place—or an atmosphere—where people are happily cut off from the rest of the world in favor of their own pursuits, usually mental and esoteric ones. From the 19th century, it has been used to designate an e ...
, Eden Games, EA France, Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe), and internet services are also growing. Other important sectors include medical research and technology, non-profit institutions, and universities. Lyon is home to the P4-Inserm–ean Merieux Laboratory which conducts top-level vaccine research. The city is home to the headquarters of many large companies such as Groupe SEB,
Sanofi Pasteur Sanofi Pasteur is the vaccines division of the French multinational pharmaceutical company Sanofi. Sanofi Pasteur is the largest company in the world devoted entirely to vaccines. It is one of four global producers of the yellow fever vaccine. ...
, Renault Trucks,
Norbert Dentressangle Norbert Dentressangle () was a major European transport, logistics and freight forwarder. It was founded in 1979, initially concentrating on cross channel transport between France and the United Kingdom. In December 2007, Norbert Dentressangle ...
,
LCL S.A. LCL S.A. is a major French banking network that is part of the Crédit Agricole group, with registered office in Lyon and administrative head office in Paris, France. It was established in 2005 from its predecessor the Crédit Lyonnais, and its ...
, Descours & Cabaud,
Merial Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health is a multinational animal health company, formed in January 2017 when Merial was acquired by Boehringer Ingelheim and merged with Boehringer Ingelheim's existing animal health assets. Overview In August 1997, ...
, Point S, BioMérieux, Iveco Bus,
Compagnie Nationale du Rhône The Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR) is a French electricity generation company, mainly supplying renewable power from hydroelectric facilities on the Rhone. Operations Established in 1933, as of 2009 the company derives most of its power fr ...
,
GL Events GL events is a French entertainment and medium enterprise founded in 1978, under the name of Polygones Services, by Olivier Ginon and three of his friends, Olivier Roux, Gilles Gouédard-Comte and Jacques Danger. It has been listed on the Paris ...
, April Group, Boiron, Feu Vert,
Panzani Panzani is a French brand of pasta. Since 2005, it has been a subsidiary of Ebro Foods. Overview The brand was started by Jean Panzani in Parthenay in 1950. In the 1950s, he sold pasta in cellophane whereas other companies used cardboard. From ...
,
Babolat Babolat is a French tennis, badminton, and padel equipment company, headquartered in Lyon, best known for its strings and tennis racquets which are used by professional and recreational players worldwide. The company has made strings since 187 ...
,
Euronews Euronews (styled on-air in lowercase as euronews) is a European television news network, headquartered in Lyon, France. The network began broadcasting on 1 January 1993 and covers world news from a European perspective. The majority of Eurone ...
, Lyon Airports, LVL Medical, and inter-governmental agencies
IARC IARC may refer to: * International Aerial Robotics Competition * International Age Rating Coalition * International Agency for Research on Cancer * International Arctic Research Center * Israel Amateur Radio Club The Israel Amateur Radio Club ...
,
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cr ...
. The specialisation of some sectors of activities has led to the creation of many main business centres:
La Part-Dieu Part-Dieu () is an area of Lyon Metropolis. It is also the second largest tertiary district in France, after La Défense in Greater Paris, with over 1,150,000 m2 of office and service space, along with 45,000 service sector jobs, 2,500 compa ...
, located in the 3rd arrondissement is the second biggest business quarter after
La Défense La Défense () is a major business district in France, located west of the city limits of Paris. It is part of the Paris metropolitan area in the Île-de-France region, located in the department of Hauts-de-Seine in the communes of Courbev ...
in Paris with over of office space and services and more than 55,000 jobs. ''Cité Internationale'', created by the architect
Renzo Piano Renzo Piano (; born 14 September 1937) is an Italian architect. His notable buildings include the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (with Richard Rogers, 1977), The Shard in London (2012), the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City (2 ...
is located in the border of the
Parc de la Tête d'Or The Parc de la Tête d'or (English: "Park of the Golden Head") is a large urban park in Lyon, France, with an area of approximately . Located in the northern part of the 6th arrondissement, it features the Jardin botanique de Lyon, as well as a ...
in the 6th arrondissement. The worldwide headquarters of
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cr ...
is located there. The district of ''Confluence'', in the south of the historic centre, is a new pole of economical and cultural development. Tourism is an important part of the Lyon economy, with one billion euros in 2007 and 3.5 million hotel-nights in 2006 provided by non-residents. Approximately 60% of tourists visit for business, with the rest for leisure. In January 2009, Lyon ranked first in France for hostels business. The festivals most important for attracting tourists are the ''
Fête des lumières The Festival of Lights (french: Fête des lumières) in Lyon, France, is a popular event that originally aimed at expressing gratitude toward Mary, mother of Jesus around December 8 of each year. This unique Lyonnaise tradition dictates that ever ...
'', the ''
Nuits de Fourvière The Nuits de Fourvière (Nights of Fourvière) is a festival with theater, circus, music, dance, and film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that ...
'' every summer, the ''Biennale d'art contemporain'' and the '' Nuits Sonores''.


Culture

Since the Middle Ages, the region residents have spoken several dialects of Franco-Provençal. The
Lyonnais The Lyonnais () is a historical province of France which owes its name to the city of Lyon. The geographical area known as the ''Lyonnais'' became part of the Kingdom of Burgundy after the division of the Carolingian Empire. The disintegratio ...
dialect was replaced by the French language as the importance of the city grew. However some "frenchified" Franco-Provençal words can also be heard in the French of the Lyonnais, who call their little boys and girls "gones" and "fenottes" for example.Jean-Baptiste Onofrio : ''Essai d'un glossaire des patois de Lyonnais, Forez et Beaujolais'', Lyon 1864 * The
Lumière brothers Lumière is French for ' light'. Lumiere, Lumière or Lumieres may refer to: *Lumières, the philosophical movement in the Age of Enlightenment People *Auguste and Louis Lumière, French pioneers in film-making Film and TV * Institut Lumière, a ...
pioneered cinema in the town in 1895. The
Institut Lumière The Institut Lumière (; "Lumière Institute") is a French organisation, based in Lyon, for the promotion and preservation of aspects of French film making. The Institut Lumière is a museum that honours the contribution to filmmaking by Auguste ...
, built as Auguste Lumiere's house, and a fascinating piece of architecture in its own right, holds many of their first inventions and other early cinematic and photographic artifacts. * 8 December each year is marked by the Festival of Lights (la Fête des lumières), a celebration of thanks to the
Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
, who purportedly saved the city from a deadly plague in the Middle Ages. During the event, the local population places candles (''luminions'') at their windows and the city of Lyon organizes impressive large-scale light shows onto the sides of important Lyonnais monuments, such as the medieval Cathédrale St-Jean. * The
Saint Francis of Sales Francis de Sales (french: François de Sales; it, Francesco di Sales; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Bishop of Geneva and is revered as a saint in the Catholic Church. He became noted for his deep faith and his gentle approach ...
church is famous for its large and unaltered Cavaillé-Coll pipe organ, attracting audiences from around the world. * The
Opéra Nouvel The Opéra Nouvel (Nouvel Opera House) in Lyon, France, is the home of the Opéra National de Lyon. The original opera house was re-designed by the distinguished French architect, Jean Nouvel between 1985 and 1993 in association with the agency o ...
(New Opera House) is the home of the Opéra National de Lyon. The original opera house was re-designed by the distinguished French architect Jean Nouvel between 1985 and 1993 and is named after him. * Lyon is also the French capital of "'' trompe l'œil''" walls, a very ancient tradition. Many are to be seen around the city. This old tradition is now finding a contemporary expression, for example in the art of Guillaume Bottazzi. * The Brothers of the Sacred Heart, a Roman Catholic congregation that operates schools in Europe and North America, was founded in Lyon in 1821. * The African Museum of Lyon is one of the oldest museums situated in Lyon. * The Museum of Resistance and Deportation looks at the various individuals prominent in the Resistance movement in World War II. The building is strongly linked to Klaus Barbie. Lyon sees itself as the centre of the French resistance and many members were shot in Place Bellecour in the town centre. The exhibition is largely a series of mini-biographies of those involved. * Lyon is a pilot city of the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 46 member states, with a p ...
and the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
Intercultural cities program.


UNESCO World Heritage site

The historic site of Lyon was designated a
UNESCO World Heritage site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
in 1998. In its designation, UNESCO cited the "exceptional testimony to the continuity of urban settlement over more than two millennia on a site of great commercial and strategic significance." The specific regions comprising the historic site include the Roman district and Fourvière, the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
district (Vieux Lyon), the silk district (slopes of Croix-Rousse), and the Presqu'île, which features architecture from the 12th century to modern times. Both Vieux Lyon and the slopes of Croix-Rousse are known for their narrow passageways (named '' traboules'') that pass through buildings and link streets on either side. The first examples of traboules are thought to have been built in Lyon in the 4th century. The traboules allowed the inhabitants to get from their homes to the
Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name d ...
quickly and allowed the canuts on the Croix-Rousse hill to get from their workshops to the textile merchants at the foot of the hill.


Gastronomy

Lyon has a long and chronicled culinary arts tradition. The noted food critic
Curnonsky Maurice Edmond Sailland (October 12, 1872, Angers, France – July 22, 1956, Paris), better known by his pen-name Curnonsky (nicknamed 'Cur'), and dubbed the Prince of Gastronomy, was one of the most celebrated writers on gastronomy in Fran ...
referred to the city as "the gastronomic capital of the world", a claim repeated by later writers such as
Bill Buford Bill Buford (born 1954) is an American author and journalist. Buford is the author of the books ''Among the Thugs'' and ''Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscan ...
. Renowned 3-star Michelin chefs such as Marie Bourgeois and
Eugénie Brazier Eugénie Brazier (12 June 1895 – 2 March 1977), known as "la Mère Brazier", was a French chef who, in 1933, became the first person awarded six Michelin stars, three each at two restaurants: La Mère Brazier in the rue Royale, one of the ...
developed Lyonnaise cuisine into a national phenomenon favoured by the French elite; a tradition which Paul Bocuse later turned into a worldwide success. The ''
bouchon A bouchon is a type of restaurant found in Lyon, France, that serves traditional Lyonnaise cuisine, such as sausages, coq-au-vin, "salade lyonnaise" duck pâté or roast pork. Compared to other forms of French cooking such as ''nouvelle cuis ...
'' is a traditional Lyonnais restaurant that serves local fare such as sausages, duck pâté or roast pork, along with local wines. Two of France's best known wine-growing regions are located near the city: the Beaujolais region to the north and the Côtes du Rhône region to the south. Another Lyon tradition is a type of
brunch Brunch is a meal eaten between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., sometimes accompanied by alcoholic drinks (typically champagne or a cocktail). The meal originated in the British hunt breakfast. The word ''brunch'' is a portmanteau of ''breakfast'' ...
food called "mâchons", made of local charcuterie and usually accompanied by Beaujolais red wine. Mâchons were the customary meal of the
canut The canuts () were Lyonnais silk workers, often working on Jacquard looms. They were primarily found in the Croix-Rousse neighbourhood of Lyon in the 19th century. Although the term generally refers to Lyonnais silk workers, silk workers in the ...
s, the city's silk workers, who ate a late-morning meal after they finished their shifts in the factories. Other traditional local dishes include coq au vin; quenelle; gras double; salade lyonnaise (lettuce with bacon, croûtons and a poached egg); and the sausage-based rosette lyonnaise and
andouillette Andouillette () is a French coarse-grained sausage made from the intestine of pork, pepper, wine, onions, and seasonings. Andouillettes are generally made from the large intestine and are in diameter. True andouillettes are rarely seen outs ...
. Popular local confections include
marron glacé A marron glacé (plural ''marrons glacés'') is a confection, originating in northern Italy and southern France consisting of a chestnut candied in sugar syrup and glazed. Marrons glacés are an ingredient in many desserts and are also eate ...
and coussin de Lyon.
Cervelle de canut Cervelle de canut is a cheese spread or dip that is a specialty of Lyon, France. The dish is a base of fromage blanc, seasoned with chopped herbs, shallots, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar. Its name literally means "silk worker's brain", af ...
(literally, "silk worker's brains") is a cheese spread/dip made of a base of fromage blanc, seasoned with chopped herbs, shallots, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar. More recently, the
french tacos A French tacos (french: tacos français , or commonly ''tacos'') or matelas (French for "mattress") is a fast food dish which usually consists of a flour tortilla grilled and folded around a filling of French fries, cheese, and meat, among other ...
was invented in Lyon suburbs in the early 2000s and is now worldwide famous.


Sport

Lyon is home to the
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
club Olympique Lyonnais (OL), whose men's team plays in
Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. ...
and has won the championship of that competition seven times, all consecutively from 2002 to 2008). OL played until December 2015 at the 43,000-seat Stade de Gerland, which also hosted matches of the
1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for t ...
. Since 2016, the team has played at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais, a 59,000-seat stadium located in the eastern suburb of Décines-Charpieu. OL operates a women's team,
Olympique Lyonnais Féminin Olympique Lyonnais Féminin (; commonly referred to as Olympique Lyon, Lyon, or simply OL) is a French women's football club based in Lyon. The club has been the female section of Olympique Lyonnais since 2004. It is the most successful club ...
, which competes in and dominates
Division 1 Féminine The Division 1 Féminine, shortened as D1 Féminine or D1F, and currently known as D1 Arkema for sponsorship reasons, is the highest division of women's football in France. Run by the French Football Federation, the league is contested by twel ...
. They won fourteen consecutive top-flight championships (2007–2020), and additionally claim the four titles won by the original incarnation of FC Lyon, a women's football club that merged into OL in 2004 (the current FC Lyon was founded in 2009). The OL women have also won the UEFA Women's Champions League eight times, including in five consecutive editions from 2016 to 2020. Lyon hosted the
2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. I ...
semi-finals as well as the
Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
on 7 July at Stade de Lyon. Lyon has a
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
team, Lyon OU, in the
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 ...
, which moved into Stade de Gerland full-time in 2017–18. In addition, Lyon has a
rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
side called
Lyon Villeurbanne Lyon Villeurbanne XIII are a semi-professional rugby league club from the town of Lyon, Rhône-Alpes in France. Formed in 1934 they are one of the oldest clubs in France. During the 1950s they won both the league and cup. They currently play in ...
that plays in the French rugby league championship. The club's home is the
Stade Georges Lyvet Stade (), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (german: Hansestadt Stade, nds, Hansestadt Stood) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the district () which bears its name. It is ...
in Villeurbanne. Lyon is also home to the Lyon Hockey Club, an
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
team that competes in France's national ice hockey league. The Patinoire Charlemagne is the seat of Club des Sports de Glace de Lyon, the club of Olympic ice dancing champions
Marina Anissina Marina Vyacheslavovna Anissina (russian: Марина Вячеславовна Анисина; born 30 August 1975) is a Franco-Russian ice dancer. Competing with Gwendal Peizerat for France, she is the 2002 Olympic champion, the 1998 Olympic ...
and
Gwendal Peizerat Gwendal Peizerat (born 21 April 1972) is a French former competitive ice dancer. With Marina Anissina, he is the 2002 Olympic champion, the 1998 Olympic bronze medalist, the 2000 World champion, and a six-time French national champion. Per ...
, and world champions Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Shoenfelder. Lyon-Villeurbanne also has a
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
team, ASVEL, that plays at the Astroballe arena.


Street art

Since 2000, Birdy Kids, a group of graffiti artists from the city, has decorated several random buildings and walls along the Lyon ring road. In 2012, the artist collective was chosen to represent the city as its cultural ambassadors.


Demographics

The population of the city (commune) of Lyon proper was 522,969 at the January 2019 census. As of 2011, 14% of its population was born outside Metropolitan France. The city of Lyon and 58 suburban municipalities have formed since 2015 the Metropolis of Lyon, a directly elected metropolitan authority now in charge of most urban issues, with a population of 1,411,571 in 2019.


Education


Universities and tertiary education

* École Centrale de Lyon; * École Normale Supérieure de Lyon * EM Lyon (École de Management de Lyon); * ECE Lyon (École de Commerce Européenne de Lyon); * Institut d'études politiques de Lyon (Sciences Po Lyon); * CPE Lyon; * CNSMD (Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Lyon) * ECAM Lyon (École Catholique d'Arts et Métiers de Lyon); *
EPITECH The Paris Graduate School of Digital Innovation (french: École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies, or EPITECH), formerly European Institute of Information Technology, is a private institution of higher education in computer sci ...
; * EPITA; * ENTPE (École Nationale des Travaux Publiques de l'État); *
ESME-Sudria The École Spéciale de Mécanique et d'Electricité (English: Special School of Mechanics and Electricity), also known as ESME Sudria is a French private grande école founded in 1905. It is a part of the IONIS Education Group. Founded in ''19 ...
; *
École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centur ...
; * E-Artsup; * INSA Lyon (Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon); * Polytech Lyon; *
Institut supérieur européen de gestion group The Institut supérieur européen de gestion group (ISEG group, French for Advanced European Institute of Management) is a group of two business schools, ''ISEG Marketing & Communication School'' and ''ISG Programme Business & Management'', the f ...
; * ISARA (Institut Supérieur d'Agriculture Rhône Alpes); * Institution des Chartreux; * Institut polytechnique des sciences avancées; * Université Claude Bernard (Lyon 1); * Université Lumière (Lyon 2); * Université Jean Moulin (Lyon 3); * IAE (Institut d'Administration des Entreprises de Lyon); *
Institut Sup'Biotech de Paris The Institut Sup'Biotech de Paris (Sup'Biotech or ISBP; en, Paris Higher Biotechnology Institute) is a French private engineering school created in 2003, located in Villejuif, near Paris, and in Lyon. Sup'Biotech is specialized in the field o ...
; * Catholic University of Lyon; * ESDES Business School; * IDRAC (International School of Management); * Wesford Graduate Business School; * IFAG (Business Management School); *
Institut supérieur européen de formation par l'action The Institut supérieur européen de formation par l'action (ISEFAC) is a French private business school created in 2000. Located at Paris, Lille, Nice, Bordeaux, Lyon, Nantes, and Brussels, the school provides two courses: ISEFAC Bachelor and ...
; * Le Lycée du Parc; * La Martinière Lyon; * Web@cademie; * CEESO (Centre Européen d'Enseignement Supérieur de l'Ostéopathie); * Bellecour, Écoles D'Arts.


Primary and secondary schools

There are some international private schools in the Lyon area, including: * Cité Scolaire Internationale de Lyon or the Lycée de Gerland; ** Includes the ''Section Japonaises'' (リヨン・ジェルラン補習授業校 ''Riyon Jeruran Hoshū Jugyō Kō'' "Lyon Gerland Japanese Supplementary School"), which the Japanese Ministry of Education (MEXT) counts as a part-time Japanese supplementary school欧州の補習授業校一覧(平成25年4月15日現在)


. Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). Retrieved on 10 May 2014. Cite Scolaire: "Cité Scolaire Internationale, 2 place de Montréal,69361 LYON CEDEX 07 FRANCE" and Lyon: "Maison Berty Albrecht 14, Place Grandclement, 69100 Viueurbanne, FRANCE"
* Ombrosa; * International School of Lyon in nearby Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon; * Montessori School of Lyon.


Supplementary education

Other Japanese supplementary schools: * The ''Association Pour le Developpement de la Langue et de la Culture Japonaises'' (ADLCJ; リヨン補習授業校 ''Riyon Hoshū Jugyō Kō'') is held in the ''Maison Berty Albrecht'' in
Villeurbanne Villeurbanne (; frp, Velorbana) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after ...
, near Lyon. It was formed in 1987. It serves Japanese expatriate children who wish to continue their Japanese education whilst abroad.


Transport

Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport, located east of Lyon, serves as a base for domestic and international flights. It is a key transport facility for the entire Rhône-Alpes region, with coach links to other cities in the area. The in-house train station
Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry Gare is the word for "station" in French and related languages, commonly meaning railway station Gare can refer to: People * Gare (surname), surname * The Gare Family, fictional characters in the novel '' Wild Geese'' by Martha Ostenso Places * ...
connects the airport to the nationwide
TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
network. The Rhônexpress tram monopoly links the airport with the business quarter of La Part Dieu in less than 30 minutes, and offers connections with Underground A & B, Tramway T1, T3 & T4, and bus lines. Lyon public transport Sytral offers a bus service, Route 47, that links the airport to Meyzieu where passengers can change onto Tram T3. The regular price of public transport is €1.90, as opposed to €15 one way for the Rhonexpress. In the suburb of
Bron Bron () is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, eastern France. Geography Bron lies east-southeast of central Lyon. It is the sixth-largest suburb of the city of Lyon, and is adjacent to its east side. Clima ...
, the smaller Lyon-Bron Airport provides an alternative for domestic aviation. Lyon has two major railway stations: Lyon Part-Dieu, which was built to accommodate the TGV, and Lyon Perrache, an older station that now provides mostly regional service. Smaller railway stations include Gorge-de-Loup,
Vaise Vaise is a neighborhood of the City of Lyon ( France), located along the Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and ...
, Vénissieux, Saint-Paul and
Jean Macé Jean François Macé (22 August 1815 in Paris – 13 December 1894 in Monthiers) was a French educator, journalist, active freemason and politician. He was perhaps best known as the founder of Ligue de l'enseignement to promote free, univers ...
. Lyon was the first city to be connected to Paris by the TGV in 1981. Since that time the TGV train network has expanded and links Lyon directly to Perpignan, Toulouse, Nice, Marseille, Strasbourg, Nantes and Lille. International trains operate directly to Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Turin, Geneva, Frankfurt, Luxembourg, Brussels and London. The city is at the heart of a dense road network and is located at the meeting point of several highways: A6 to Paris, A7
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, A42 to
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
, and A43 to Grenoble. The city is now bypassed by the A46. A double motorway tunnel passes under Fourvière, connecting the A6 and the A7 autoroutes, both forming the "Autoroute du Soleil". Lyon is served by the Eurolines intercity coach organisation. Its Lyon terminal is located at the city's Perrache railway station, which serves as an intermodal transportation hub for tramways, local and regional trains and buses, the terminus of Metro line A, of the Tramway T2, the bicycle service Vélo'v, and taxis. The Transports en commun lyonnais (TCL), Lyon's public transit system, consisting of metro, tramways and buses, serves 62 communes of the Lyon metropolis. The metro network has four lines ( ), 42 stations, and runs with a frequency of up to a train every 2 minutes. There are eight Lyon tram lines since november 2020: T1 from ''Debourg'' in the south to ''IUT-Feyssine'' in the north, Tram T2 from ''Hôtel de région Montrochet'' to Saint-Priest in the south-east, Tram T3 from
Part-Dieu Part-Dieu () is an area of Lyon Metropolis. It is also the second largest tertiary district in France, after La Défense in Greater Paris, with over 1,150,000 m2 of office and service space, along with 45,000 service sector jobs, 2,500 compani ...
to
Meyzieu Meyzieu (; frp, Mêsiô) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. It is a large suburb of Lyon, situated 13 km east of the city centre on the left bank of the Rhône. Before 1967, it was part of ...
, Tram T4 from 'Hôptial Feyzin Venissieux' to La Doua Gaston Berger. Tram T5 from Grange Blanche, in the south-east to Eurexpo in the south-west. Tram T6 from Debourg, in the south to Hôpitaux Est-Pinel in the east. Tram T7 from Vaux-en-Velin la soie, in the north-east to Décines – OL Vallée in the east. And Rhône Express tramline from
Part-Dieu Part-Dieu () is an area of Lyon Metropolis. It is also the second largest tertiary district in France, after La Défense in Greater Paris, with over 1,150,000 m2 of office and service space, along with 45,000 service sector jobs, 2,500 compani ...
to Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport. The Lyon bus network consists of the Lyon trolleybus system, motorbuses, and coaches for areas outside the centre. There are also two funicular lines from Vieux Lyon to Saint-Just and Fourvière. The ticketing system is relatively simple as the city has only one public transport operator, the SYTRAL. The public transit system has been complemented since 2005 by ''
Vélo'v Vélo'v is a bicycle sharing system run by the city of Lyon, France, in conjunction with the advertising company JCDecaux. It has been the pioneer of smart bicycle-sharing systems, previous systems being more ad hoc and run similar to a ch ...
'', a bicycle network providing a low-cost service where bicycles can be hired and returned at any of 340 stations throughout the city. Borrowing a bicycle for less than 30 minutes is free. Free rental time can be extended for another 30 minutes at any station. Lyon was the first city in France to introduce this bicycle renting system. In 2011 the Auto'lib car rental service was introduced; it works much the same way as the Velo'v but for cars. The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Lyon on a weekday is 45 minutes. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 11 min, while 17% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is 4.7 km, while 4% travel for over 12 km in a single direction.


International relations

Lyon is a pilot city of the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 46 member states, with a p ...
and the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
"Intercultural cities" program. Lyon is twinned with: *
Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
, Ethiopia *
Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on the Niger Rive ...
, Mali *
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, Spain *
Beersheba Beersheba or Beer Sheva, officially Be'er-Sheva ( he, בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע, ''Bəʾēr Ševaʿ'', ; ar, بئر السبع, Biʾr as-Sabʿ, Well of the Oath or Well of the Seven), is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. ...
, Israel *
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
, England, United Kingdom *
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, United States *
Craiova Craiova (, also , ), is Romania's 6th Cities in Romania, largest city and capital of Dolj County, and situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximatel ...
, Romania *
Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
, Germany, since 1960 *
Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
, Sweden *
Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
, China, since 1988 * Haute Matsiatra, Madagascar *
Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...
, Vietnam, since 1997 *
Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho ...
, Palestine *
Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
, Germany, since 1981 *
Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of ca ...
, Poland, since 1991 *
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
, Italy, since 1966 *
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
, Canada, since 1979 *
Oran Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...
, Algeria *
Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...
, Japan, since 1984 *
Ouagadougou Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's n ...
, Burkina Faso *
Porto-Novo Porto-Novo (Portuguese: "New Port", , ; yo, Àjàṣẹ́, ), also known as Hogbonu and Ajashe, is the capital of Benin. The commune covers an area of and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people. Situated on an inlet of the Gulf of G ...
, Benin *
Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populatio ...
, Morocco * St. Louis, United States *
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Russia * Sétif, Algeria * Tinca, Romania *
Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
, Italy *
Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...
, Armenia, since 1992 *
Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...
, Japan, since 1959


Notable people

*
André-Marie Ampère André-Marie Ampère (, ; ; 20 January 177510 June 1836) was a French physicist and mathematician who was one of the founders of the science of classical electromagnetism, which he referred to as "electrodynamics". He is also the inventor of nu ...
* Jonathan Gagnoud * Gerard Bérchet, inventor of
nylon Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers composed of polyamides ( repeating units linked by amide links).The polyamides may be aliphatic or semi-aromatic. Nylon is a silk-like thermoplastic, generally made from pet ...
and
neoprene Neoprene (also polychloroprene) is a family of synthetic rubbers that are produced by polymerization of chloroprene.Werner Obrecht, Jean-Pierre Lambert, Michael Happ, Christiane Oppenheimer-Stix, John Dunn and Ralf Krüger "Rubber, 4. Emulsion R ...
* Karim Benzema, football player for
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...


See also

* Gallia Lugdunensis * List of films set in Lyon *
List of streets and squares in Lyon This article lists the main streets and squares in Lyon, France. A * Place Ambroise-Courtois * Place Ampère * Rue Antoine Sallès * Cours Albert Thomas * Rue de l'Arbre-Sec * Rue des Archers * Passage de l'Argue * Rue Armand Calliat, named fo ...
* Mères of France *
Occupation of Saint-Nizier church by Lyon prostitutes The occupation of Saint-Nizier Church by Lyon prostitutes refers to the ten-day occupation of Saint-Nizier Church in Lyon by more than a hundred prostitutes on 2 June 1975 to draw attention to their "inhumane" working conditions. The occupation ...


Notes


References


External links

*
Visit Lyon, the official website for tourism in France

Lyon Tourist Office and Convention Bureau

Lyon’s English Language News and InformationRues de Lyon
Streets, Places, Monuments (in French)

The
National Library of Israel The National Library of Israel (NLI; he, הספרייה הלאומית, translit=HaSifria HaLeumit; ar, المكتبة الوطنية في إسرائيل), formerly Jewish National and University Library (JNUL; he, בית הספרים הלא� ...
{{Authority control Communes of Lyon Metropolis Populated places on the Rhône Cities in France Prefectures in France Segusiavi Gallia Lugdunensis Lyonnais World Heritage Sites in France Cities in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Populated riverside places in France