Nord (department) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Nord
Department
Prefecture building of the Nord department, in Lille.
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Nord in France
Country	France
Region	Hauts-de-France
Département	4 March 1790
Prefecture	Lille
Subprefectures	Avesnes-sur-Helpe, Cambrai, Douai, Dunkirk, Valenciennes
Area
• Total	5,742.8 km2 (2,217.3 sq mi)
Population  (2014)
• Total	2,603,472
• Density	453.345/km2 (1,174.159/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Nordistes
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	FR-59
Arrondissements	6
Cantons	41
Communes	648

Nord is a department in the north of France, in the Hauts-de-France region. Its name is because the department is in the north of France. Its prefecture is Lille.

History

Nord is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790 with Douai as is capital.

It was divided in eight districts: Avesnes, Bergues, Cambrai, Douai, Hazebrouck, Lille, Le Quesnoy and Valenciennes.

In 1800, with the creation of the arrondissements in France, the eight districts were changed into six arrondissements: Avesnes, Bergues, Cambrai, Cassel, Douai and Lille.

In 1803, the capital of the department was moved from Douai to Lille and the subprefecture of Bergues was moved to Dunkirk.

The arrondissement of Valenciennes was created in 1824.

The subprefecture of Cassel was moved to Hazebrouck in 1857. On 10 September 1926, the arrondissement of Hazebrouck was eliminated.

In 1962, the name of the commune Avesnes was changed to Avesnes-sur-Helpe.

Geography

Nord is part of the Hauts-de-France region. It has an area of 5,742.8 km² (2,217 sq mi).

The department is surrounded by the North Sea, Belgium (West Flanders and Hainaut provinces) and 3 other departments of the Hauts-de-France region:

• Hauts-de-France region
  • Aisne (south)
  • Somme (southwest) (a short distance)
  • Pas-de-Calais (west)

	North Sea	Belgium
	Pas-de-Calais		Belgium
		Nord
	Somme	Aisne

The highest point in the department is in the commune of Anor (49°59′48″N 4°9′32″E / 49.99667°N 4.15889°E / 49.99667; 4.15889 (Nord High Point)) near the border with Belgium; it is 271 m (889 ft) high.

Several rivers flow through the department; the main rivers are the Scheldt/Escaut, the Yser, the Lys, the Scarpe, and the Sambre.

Climate

The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Lille is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Marine West Coast Climate) and of the subtype "Cfb".

The average amount of precipitation for the year in Lille is 645.2 mm (25.4 in). The month with the most precipitation on average is October with 63.5 mm (2.5 in) of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is February with an average of 40.6 mm (1.6 in).

The average temperature for the year in Lille is 10.8 °C (51.4 °F). The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of 18.6 °C (65.5 °F). The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of 3.6 °C (38.5 °F).

Administration

Nord is managed by the Departmental Council of Aisne in Lille. The department is part of the Hauts-de-France region.

Administrative divisions

There are 6 arrondissements (districts), 41 cantons and 648 communes (municipalities) in Nord.

The following is a list of the 41 cantons of the Nord department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:

Demographics

The inhabitants of Nord are known, in French, as Nordistes.

Nord had a population, in 2014, of 2,603,472, for a population density of 453.3 inhabitants/km². The arrondissement of Lille, with 1,232,513 inhabitants, is the arrondissement with more inhabitants.

The 10 communes in the department with more inhabitants are:

Related pages

• Communes of the Nord department

Images for kids

• 

  Lille cathedral.

• 

  Dunkirk town hall.

• 

  Overview of Douai.

• 

  Valenciennes town hall.

• 

  Place Verte, Valenciennes.