Saint-Germain-Laval (;
Arpitan: ''Sant-Gèrman-la-Vâr'') is a
commune in the
Loire
The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône.
It rises in the so ...
department in central
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
.
INSEE commune file
/ref>
The North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
n explorer Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut
Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut ( 1639 – 25 February 1710) was a French soldier and explorer who is the first European known to have visited the area where the city of Duluth, Minnesota, United States, is now located and the head of Lake Superi ...
was born in Saint-Germain-Laval.
Geography
The commune is located in the plain of Forez
Forez (; ) is a Provinces of France, former province of France, corresponding approximately to the central part of the modern Loire (department), Loire ''département in France, département'' and a part of the Haute-Loire and Puy-de-Dôme ''dépa ...
, in the center of departement of Loire, in the center of France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, 35 kilometers south of Roanne
Roanne (; ; ) is a commune in the Loire department, central France.
It is located northwest of Lyon on the river Loire. It has an important Museum, the ''Musée des Beaux-arts et d'Archéologie Joseph-Déchelette'' (French), with many Egypt ...
, 52 kilometers north-west of Saint-Etienne and 37 kilometers east of Thiers.
It is crossed by the Aix river, a tributary of the Loire
The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône.
It rises in the so ...
which flows less than ten kilometers to the east.
A
The commune is 6 kilometers south of exit 5 of A89 autoroute
The A89 autoroute is an autoroute in central France. It is known as the ''La Transeuropéenne''. It connects Bordeaux (from Libourne) and Lyon (at Limonest) via Clermont-Ferrand. Its total length is 544 km (338 mi).
The project st ...
linking Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...
(Auvergne, 85 km distant) to Saint-Étienne
Saint-Étienne (; Franco-Provençal: ''Sant-Etiève''), also written St. Etienne, is a city and the prefecture of the Loire département, in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regi ...
(62 km distant).
Population
Twin towns
Saint-Germain-Laval is twinned with:
* San Germano, Italy
See also
*Communes of the Loire department
The following is a list of the 320 communes of the Loire department of France.
The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2025):
* Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut
Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut ( 1639 – 25 February 1710) was a French soldier and explorer who is the first European known to have visited the area where the city of Duluth, Minnesota, United States, is now located and the head of Lake Superi ...
(c. 1639 – 1710), born in Saint-Germain-Laval. He is the namesake of Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...
as well as Duluth, Georgia
Duluth ( ) is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. Located north of Interstate 85, it is approximately northeast of Atlanta.
As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Duluth had a population of 31,873, and the United Stat ...
References
Communes of Loire (department)
{{Loire-geo-stub
pms:Saint-Germain-Laval