Hérault department

Herault
region	Occitania
prefecture	Montpellier
Sub-prefecture (s)	Béziers Lodève
Residents	1,144,892 (Jan. 1, 2017)
Population density	187 inhabitants per km²
surface	6,129.36 km²
Arrondissements	3
Community associations	17th
Cantons	25th
Communities	342
President of the Department Council	André Vezinhet ( PS )
ISO-3166-2 code	FR-34
Location of the Hérault department in the Occitanie region

The Hérault department [ eʀo ] ( . Okz : Erau eʀau ) is the French department with the atomic number 34. It is in the south of the country in the region Okzitanien and was named after the river Hérault named. The capital is Montpellier .

geography

The Hérault department stretches from the Massif Central in the north to the Mediterranean Sea in the south, which forms an 87-kilometer coastline there. In the northeast, the Vidourle river divides the Hérault and Gard departments . The river Hérault flows through the department coming from the north ( Ganges ) to the confluence with the Mediterranean at Agde . The second major river is the Orb . The Canal du Midi starts here in the east.

history

The department was formed on March 4, 1790 from part of the Languedoc province .

From 1960 to 2015 it belonged to the Languedoc-Roussillon region , which in 2016 became part of the Occitania region.

coat of arms

Description : In silver, a red compass with a gold Tolosan cross .

Significant places

• Montpellier
• Beziers
• Sète
• Agde
• Pézenas
• Lodève
• Frontignan

Administrative division

Communes and arrondissements in the Hérault department

Arrondissement	Cantons	Communities	Residents January 1, 2017	Area km²	Density of population / km²	Code INSEE
Beziers	9	153	313.411	3,092.42	101	341
Lodève	5	122	140.289	2,004.98	70	342
Montpellier	16	67	691.192	1,031.96	670	343
Hérault department	25th	342	1,144,892	6,129.36	187	34

See also:

• List of communes in the Hérault department
• List of cantons in the Hérault department
• List of associations of municipalities in the Hérault department

economy

With the exception of the mountainous north, in which mainly sheep is farmed, wine is mainly grown in the department. The cultivation areas Coteaux du Languedoc , Faugères , Saint-Chinian and the Muscat de Frontignan deserve special mention . All of the named growing areas have the status of an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC).

On the coast there are small fishing ports and the city of Sète , the first fishing port and second trading port on the Mediterranean , as well as numerous tourist stations such as La Grande-Motte , Palavas-les-Flots or Le Cap d'Agde .

The department also offers extraordinary sights such as the Haut-Languedoc Regional Park (6,224 km²), numerous stalactite caves and cities rich in history.

Culture and education

The University of Montpellier is best known for its medical faculty (founded in 1221).

Attractions

The Hérault river

Statue menhir of Cambon et Salverguettes

• Agde : Cathedrale St. Etienne
• Les Gorges de l ' Hérault : limestone gorges of the river
• Rock formations: Cirques de Mourèze et de Navacelles
• The Grotto (caves) de Clamouse and the Grotto des Demoiselles
• The Canal du Midi
• Balaruc-les-Bains : thermal springs
• Béziers : Pont Vieux, Cathedrale St. Nazaire, Les 9 Écluses ( Fonserannes lock staircase in the Canal du Midi), flower market
• Minerve : Cathar fortress
• Montpellier : old town, university, triumphal arch, theater
• Roquebrun : Mediterranean botanical garden
• Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert : Abbaye de Gellone, medieval town center
• Sète : fishing port, weekly market, fortress, jousting tournament on the city's canals (in July)
• Vendres, Mèze : Bassin de Thau , mussel farming

climate

Observation station: Sète, on the slope of Mont Saint-Clair , at an altitude of 80 meters, 350 meters from the sea

maritime climate data	J	F.	M.	A.	M.	J	J	A.	S.	O	N	D.
mean maximum temperature	10	11	14th	16	20th	24	27	26th	23	19th	14th	11
mean low temperature	4.5	5	7th	9	13	16	19th	18th	16	13	8th	6th
Number of very sunny days	7th	6th	7th	5	5	7th	13	9	8th	6th	6th	6th
Number of days with an overcast sky	11	9	10	8th	8th	5	3	4th	7th	10	10	11
Number of rainy days	6th	5	6th	5	5	4th	2	4th	4th	7th	5	6th
Rainfall in mm	72	50	62	43	47	40	20th	35	50	110	55	60
Water temperatures near the coast	13	12	12	13	15th	17th	22nd	22nd	22nd	19th	17th	15th

Days per year with

• Rainfalls over 1 mm: 58
• Frost: 10
  • First frost: December 22nd
  • Last frost: February 14th
• Snow: 2
• Thunderstorm: 14
• Hail: 1

Status: 1991

Web links

Commons : Département Hérault  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

• General Council of the Hérault Department (French)
• Prefecture of the Hérault department (French)
• Hérault tourisme
• Découvrir l'Hérault (French)
• Pays Coeur de l'Hérault (French)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ herault.fr ( Memento of the original from January 18, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. accessed on January 18, 2016. 
2. ↑ Climate data from: Jean-Noël Darde, Plages et côtes de France, Éditions Balland, Paris 1991

Coordinates: 43 ° 37 '  N , 3 ° 28'  E