Lot department

Lot
region	Occitania
prefecture	Cahors
Sub-prefecture (s)	Figeac Gourdon
Residents	173,828 (Jan 1, 2017)
Population density	33 inhabitants per km²
surface	5,216.60 km²
Arrondissements	3
Community associations	10
Cantons	17th
Communities	313
President of the Department Council	Serge Rigal ( PS )
ISO-3166-2 code	FR-46
Location of the Lot department in the Occitanie region

The Lot [ lɔt ] department is the French department with serial number 46. It is located in the south of the country in the Occitanie region and was named after the Lot River, a tributary of the Garonne .

history

The Lot department was created on March 4, 1790 from parts of the old French province of Quercy (part of the Guyenne governorate ). In addition, areas further south (especially Montauban ) were added. In 1808, however, these were lost again when the Tarn-et-Garonne department was rebuilt.

It belonged to the Midi-Pyrénées region from 1960 to 2015 , which was added to the Occitania region in 2016 .

geography

Meander neck of the Lot in Luzech

The Lot department borders on the Corrèze , Cantal , Aveyron , Tarn-et-Garonne , Lot-et-Garonne and Dordogne departments . The Lot crosses the département from east to west with numerous meanders , the narrowest meander neck is around 200 m wide in the village of Luzech, which can be impressively observed from numerous vantage points.

In the north of the department, the Dordogne also cuts through the area. Between the two large rivers, in the eastern part of the department, are the Causses , limestone plateaus that are heavily influenced by karst processes .

coat of arms

Description : In red, a silver, black-jointed stone bridge with six arches over a blue corrugated shield base . On the bridge there are five silver, black-jointed, five-pinned towers, rising towards the middle of the bridge, with open arches, above each of which a golden lily hovers at the same distance.

Administrative division

Communes and arrondissements in the Lot department

Arrondissement	Cantons	Communities	Residents January 1, 2017	Area km²	Density of population / km²	Code INSEE
Cahors	8th	98	72,618	1,860.96	39	461
Figeac	7th	118	54,604	1,593.32	34	462
Gourdon	7th	97	46,606	1,762.30	26th	463
Lot department	17th	313	173,828	5,216.60	33	46

See also:

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

Loss of territory after the creation of the Tarn-et-Garonne department in 1808

economy

Tourism is an essential branch of the economy .

The region's most valuable agricultural product is the truffle , which finds ideal conditions in the oak forests of the Causse.

Also the viticulture in the lower valley of the Lot now plays another important role. Centuries ago, the “black wine” from Cahors was famous among noblemen all over Europe, including the Russian tsars - not least because of its dark red to black color, which made it the darkest red wine on earth.

Attractions

Archaeological sites:

• Pech Merle cave in Cabrerets near Cahors with rock carvings from around 16-20,000 BC. And a museum on prehistory

Web links

Commons : Département Lot  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• General Council of the Lot department (French)
• Prefecture of the Lot (French)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Des élus au service des Lotois. on lot.fr, accessed January 25, 2016.

Coordinates: 44 ° 34 '  N , 1 ° 35'  E