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 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 the Alps mountain range. Its capital,

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris. Rhône-Alpes has the sixth-largest economy of any European region.

Geography

Rhône-Alpes is located in the southeast of France. The neighboring (pre-2016) regions are Bourgogne (Burgundy) and Franche-Comté to the north, Auvergne to the west,

Languedoc-Roussillon Languedoc-Roussillon (; oc, Lengadòc-Rosselhon ; ca, Llenguadoc-Rosselló) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, it joined with the region of Midi-Pyrénées to become Occitania. It comprised five departments, and b ...

to the southwest, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur to the south. The eastern part of the region is in the Alps, and borders Switzerland and Italy. The highest peak is

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and ...

, on the French-Italian border. The central part of the region comprises the river valleys of the

and 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 ...

. The confluence of these two rivers is at Lyon. The western part of the region contains the start of the

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,0 ...

mountain range. The region also borders or contains major lakes such as Lake Geneva (''Lac Léman'') and Lake Annecy. The Ardèche flows through the southwest portion of the region, where it has carved the deepest gorge in Europe. As with the rest of France, French is the only official language of the region. Until the mid-20th century, Arpitan was widely spoken in the whole region, while many of the inhabitants of the south spoke varieties of Occitan; both are in steep decline in this region. There are immigrant populations from Armenia, Italy, North Africa, Poland and Portugal, and elsewhere. Rhône-Alpes is made up of the following departments: * Ain (01). Capital:

Bourg-en-Bresse Bourg-en-Bresse (; frp, Bôrg) is the prefecture of the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Located northeast of Lyon, it is the capital of the ancient province of Bresse ( frp, Brêsse, links=no). In 2018, ...

* Ardèche (07). Capital: Privas * Drôme (26). Capital: Valence * Isère (38). Capital:

Grenoble lat, Gratianopolis , commune status = Prefecture and commune , image = Panorama grenoble.png , image size = , caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...

* Loire (42). Capital: Saint-Étienne *

(69). Capital:

Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population ...

(73). Capital:

Chambéry Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chamb ...

Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè d'Amont'' or ''Hiôta-Savouè''; en, Upper Savoy) or '; it, Alta Savoia. is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its prefecture is Ann ...

(74). Capital: Annecy And, since 2015, Metropolis with

territorial collectivity A territorial collectivity (french: collectivité territoriale, previously '), or territorial authority, is a chartered subdivision of France with recognized governing authority. It is the generic name for any subdivision (subnational entity) wi ...

statute: *

Metropolis of 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 ...

(69). Capital:

Lakes

There are six main lakes in Rhône-Alpes: *

Lac de Paladru Lake Paladru (''Lac de Paladru, nicknamed "Lac Bleu" by local residents'') is a small lake located in the Isère ''département'' of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, near Charavines, in France. The lake was formed by the glacier of the Rhône. It is 5.3&nb ...

Lac d'Aiguebelette Lac d'Aiguebelette is a natural lake in the commune of Aiguebelette-le-Lac, within the department of Savoie, France. Geography Description With a surface area of 5.45 km2 and a depth of 71 meters it is one of the largest natural lakes of F ...

* Lac du Bourget * Lac d'Annecy * Lac de Nantua * Lac Léman

Prefectures

Prefectures listed in descending order of size: *

(

) *

( Isère) * Saint-Étienne ( Loire) * Valence ( Drôme) *

(

) * Annecy (

) *

( Ain) * Privas ( Ardèche)

History

Although there have been people in Rhône-Alpes since pre-historic times, the earliest recorded settlers of the region were the Gauls (Celts). Cities such as Lyon were founded by them and the region traded with both northern and southern Europe. Most of the area became part of Roman territory during the invasion of Celtic Gaul led by

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

and was at various times part of the regions of Lugdunensis and Gallia. Lyon itself became a major city in the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

. The region, excepting Savoy, was part of the Merovingian and Carolingian Kingdoms before becoming a royal territory under the Capetians. As it became a royal territory early on in French history, its cultural, political and economic influences and developments paralleled those of greater France. (See

History of France The first written records for the history of France appeared in the Iron Age. What is now France made up the bulk of the region known to the Romans as Gaul. The first writings on indigenous populations mainly start in the first century BC. Gree ...

Transportation

Rhône-Alpes is a major European transit hub, linking northern France and Europe to the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

area. Millions travel along its motorways in summertime from Paris to holidays at the sea. The E15 Euroroute (

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

to Spain) runs through the region. There are international airports at Lyon, Grenoble and Saint-Étienne and many other minor airports and airfields. The region is also a transport hub for the rail network with the TGV running through Lyon from Paris and the north, to the Mediterranean. A high-speed rail link is planned from Lyon to

Turin Turin ( , 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 from 1861 to 1865. The ...

Economy

Rhône-Alpes is a prosperous region which can be seen by its per capita GDP of about €31,231 ($40,000), which is higher than the French average, and an average income of €35,910 ($50,246), its economy second in size only to Île-de-France in France. This can be attributed to the diversity of the production in different sectors. The region is one of the Four Motors for Europe. * Industry, in particular: ** Light engineering and high-tech ** Mechanical engineering in the area of Annecy ** Precision machining in the area of Cluses * Services, in particular: ** High-tech industries, nanotechnology, biotechnology especially in

with 62,300 jobs in these sectors thanks to the presence of the Polygone Scientifique, Inovallée and some large companies as

Schneider Electric Schneider Electric SE is a French multinational company that specializes in digital automation and energy management. It addresses homes, buildings, data centers, infrastructure and industries, by combining energy technologies, real-time automatio ...

. ** Optic and design in Saint-Étienne ** Tourism with the Alps (for skiing), Lyon and Grenoble (for culture) and the Ardèche (adventure sports/ camping) particularly popular ** Education, with major universities in Lyon, Grenoble and Saint-Étienne. In the past mining, especially coal mining was an important sector, particularly around Saint-Étienne, although this has declined since the 1970s. The area of the region that lies close to Switzerland has an economy linked to that of

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

. This area forms a hinterland for the Geneva hub. The Triangle of

, Saint-Étienne and

contribute a GDP of €145 billion to the region. Add Valence to it, it is almost €150 billion. In addition,

alone has a Gross Metropolitan Product of about €85 billion. The region has been part of Alps–Mediterranean Euroregion since 10 July 2007.

Major cities

Winter Olympics

Rhône-Alpes region has hosted the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

three times; in 1924 at

Chamonix Chamonix-Mont-Blanc ( frp, Chamôni), more commonly known as Chamonix, is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. It was the site of the first Winter Olympics in 1924. In 2019, it had ...

, 1968 at

, and 1992 at

Albertville Albertville (; Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a subprefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. In 2018, the commune had ...

Tourism

Situated between Paris and the Côte d’Azur, on the border with both Switzerland and Italy, and offering access to two international airports (

and

), impressive rail connections and a vast motorway network, the Rhône-Alpes region is at "the crossroads of Europe". Boasting eight natural parks and peerless sites such as

and the Gorges de l’Ardèche, Rhône-Alpes offers a wide range of different landscapes: mountains, vineyards and gentle valleys, fields of lavender and olive groves. Every form of sport is readily available, set against an impressive natural backdrop: skiing, hiking, mountain biking or even paragliding and canoeing. Besides hosting three

games due to its being the largest ski area in the world, Rhône-Alpes is the second most important golfing region in France with over 60 courses. 00 Saint-Gervais-les-Bains - JPG1

Enthusiasts of art and culture will not be disappointed by the region's Villes d’Art: Lyon, which is classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage site, Annecy, Grenoble, Chambéry, and Saint-Étienne. And last but not least, connoisseurs of good food and wine will be spoilt for choice by the range of local specialties available to taste along with a Beaujolais or a Côtes du Rhône, and by the sheer number of famous restaurants (with Paul Bocuse at the top of the list) in the region.

Gastronomy

Lyon is noted as a gastronomic centre of France and specialities served in its traditional '' bouchons'' include Lyon sausage, sophisticated salami (known there as "'' rosette''"), tripe and quenelles. In the east of the region the food has an Alpine flavour with dishes such as fondue, raclette common, gratin dauphinois and gratin savoyard. The region is also famous for its Bresse poultry and the many varieties of cheese including Tomme de Savoie,

Bleu de Bresse Bleu de Bresse () is a blue cheese that was first made in the Bresse area of France following World War II. Made from whole milk, it has a firm, edible coating which is characteristically white in color and has an aroma of mushrooms. Its creamy ...

Reblochon Reblochon () is a soft washed-rind and smear-ripened French cheese made in the Alpine region of Haute-Savoie from raw cow's milk. It has its own AOC designation. Reblochon was first produced in the Thônes and Arly valleys, in the Aravis massi ...

, Saint-Marcellin and

Vacherin Vacherin is a cow's milk (French ''vache'', "cow") cheese. Two main types of French or Swiss Vacherin cheeses exist. Mont d'Or One type of Vacherin cheese is called mont d'Or, or Vacherin du Haut-Doubs, from France,'' 'French Cheeses' '', DK, ...

. Wines in this region include

Beaujolais Beaujolais ( , ) is a French ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) wine generally made of the Gamay grape, which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Whites from the region, which mak ...

, Côtes du Rhône and

Savoy wine Savoy () is a wine region situated in the Savoy region in eastern France, and is sometimes referred to as the country of the Allobroges. It is the only alpine wine region in France, and is known for grape varieties rarely grown elsewhere, including ...

. Chartreuse liqueur is made in the region. Lyon is the home of very typical and traditional restaurants: the '' bouchons''. '' Bouchons'' are usually convivial restaurants serving local dishes, and local wines. Lyon is famous for its morning snacks, the ''mâchons'', made up of local

charcuterie Charcuterie ( , also ; ; from french: chair, , flesh, label=none, and french: cuit, , cooked, label=none) is a French term for a branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, ''galantines'', ''ballo ...

, especially the rosette and usually accompanied by Beaujolais red wine. Traditional local dishes include ''saucisson de Lyon'' (sausage), andouillette,

coq au vin ''Coq au vin'' (; , "rooster/cock with wine") is a French dish of chicken braised with wine, lardons, mushrooms, and optionally garlic. A red Burgundy wine is typically used, though many regions of France make variants using local wines, such ...

, esox (pike) quenelle, ''gras double'' ( tripe cooked with onions), ''salade lyonnaise'' (lettuce with bacon, croûtons and a

poached egg A poached egg is an egg that has been cooked, outside the shell, by poaching (or sometimes steaming), as opposed to simmering or boiling. This method of preparation can yield more delicately cooked eggs than cooking at higher temperatures such as ...

), marrons glacés and cardoon ''au gratin''. The small village of Dabussy also hosts a yearly event where food throughout the region is presented and shared with the community. raclette originated in this village and the festival is celebrated to commemorate that.

References

External links

Rhône-Alpes page on france.fr
official French website (in English)
Rhône-Alpes Tourisme
- travel website {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhone-Alpes * NUTS 2 statistical regions of the European Union Former regions of France France geography articles needing translation from French Wikipedia