Lyon

Centre: Parc de la Tête d'Or, Confluence district and the Vieux Lyon. Bottom: Pont Lafayette, Part-Dieu district with the Place Bellecour

Place Bellecour in foreground during Festival of Lights.

Flag

Coat of arms

Motto(s): Avant, avant, Lion le melhor. (Old Franco-Provençal: Forward, forward, Lyon
Lyon the best)[nb 1]

Lyon

Location within Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region

Lyon

Coordinates: 45°46′N 4°50′E / 45.76°N 4.84°E / 45.76; 4.84Coordinates: 45°46′N 4°50′E / 45.76°N 4.84°E / 45.76; 4.84

Country France

Region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Metropolis Metropolis of Lyon

Arrondissement Lyon

Subdivisions 9 arrondissements

Government

• Mayor (2017–2020) Georges Képénékian
Georges Képénékian (PS)

Area1 47.87 km2 (18.48 sq mi)

• Metro (2010) 6,018.62 km2 (2,323.80 sq mi)

Population (Jan. 2014[1])2 506,615

• Rank 3rd in France

• Density 11,000/km2 (27,000/sq mi)

• Metro (2014) 2,265,375[2] (2nd in France)

Time zone CET (GMT +1) (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)

INSEE/Postal code 69123 /69001-69009

Elevation 162–349 m (531–1,145 ft)

Website lyon.fr

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Lyon
Lyon (UK: /ˈliːɒ̃/,[3] US: /liˈɒ̃/; French: [ljɔ̃] ( listen), locally [lijɔ̃]; Arpitan: Liyon [ʎjɔ̃]), also known in British English
British English as Lyons (/ˈlaɪənz/), is the third-largest city of France. It is located in the country's east-central part at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône,[4] about 470 km (292 mi) south from Paris, 320 km (199 mi) north from Marseille
Marseille and 55 km (34 mi) east from Saint-Étienne. Inhabitants of the city are called Lyonnais. Lyon
Lyon had a population of 513,275 in 2015.[1] It is the capital of the Metropolis of Lyon
Metropolis of Lyon and the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The Lyon metropolitan area had a population of 2,265,375 in 2014, the second-largest urban area in France.[2] The city is known for its cuisine and gastronomy, and historical and architectural landmarks; part of it is a registered as a UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lyon
Lyon was historically an important area for the production and weaving of silk. Lyon
Lyon played a significant role in the history of cinema: it is where Auguste and Louis Lumière
Auguste and Louis Lumière invented the cinematograph. It is also known for its light festival, the Fête des Lumières, which begins every 8 December and lasts for four days, earning Lyon
Lyon the title of Capital of Lights. Economically, Lyon
Lyon is a major centre for banking, as well as for the chemical, pharmaceutical, and biotech industries. The city contains a significant software industry with a particular focus on video games, and in recent years has fostered a growing local start-up sector.[5] Lyon
Lyon hosts the international headquarters of Interpol, Euronews, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Lyon
Lyon was ranked 19th globally and second in France
France for innovation in 2014.[6] It ranked second in France
France and 39th globally in Mercer's 2015 liveability rankings.

Contents

1 History

1.1 Ancient Lyon 1.2 Modern Lyon

2 Geography

2.1 Climate

3 Administration

3.1 Mayors

4 Culture

4.1 UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site 4.2 Gastronomy 4.3 Sport 4.4 Street art

5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Main sights

7.1 Antiquity 7.2 Middle Ages and Renaissance 7.3 17th and 18th centuries 7.4 19th century and modern city 7.5 Museums 7.6 Parks and gardens

8 Education

8.1 Universities and tertiary education 8.2 Primary and secondary schools 8.3 Supplementary education

9 Transport 10 International relations

10.1 Sister cities

11 Gallery 12 See also 13 Notes 14 References 15 External links

History[edit] Main articles: History of Lyon
History of Lyon and Timeline of Lyon Ancient Lyon[edit] Main article: Lugdunum According to the historian Dio Cassius, in 43 BC, the Roman Senate ordered the creation of a settlement for Roman refugees of war with the Allobroges. These refugees had been expelled from Vienne
Vienne and were now encamped at the confluence of the Saône
Saône and Rhône
Rhône rivers. The foundation was built on Fourvière
Fourvière hill and officially called Colonia Copia Felix Munatia, a name invoking prosperity and the blessing of the gods. The city became increasingly referred to as Lugdunum
Lugdunum (and occasionally Lugudunum[7]).[8] The earliest translation of this Gaulish place-name as "Desired Mountain" is offered by the 9th-century Endlicher Glossary.[9] In contrast, some modern scholars have proposed a Gaulish hill-fort named Lug[o]dunon, after the Celtic god Lugus ('Light', cognate with Old Irish Lugh, Modern Irish Lú), and dúnon (hill-fort).

The Roman-era Theatre on the Fourvière
Fourvière hill

The Romans recognised that Lugdunum's strategic location at the convergence of two navigable rivers made it a natural communications hub. The city became the starting point of the principal Roman roads in the area, and it quickly became the capital of the province, Gallia Lugdunensis. Two emperors were born in this city: Claudius, whose speech is preserved in the Lyon Tablet
Lyon Tablet in which he justifies the nomination of Gallic senators, and Caracalla. Early Christians
Early Christians in Lyon
Lyon were martyred for their beliefs under the reigns of various Roman emperors, most notably Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius and Septimius Severus. Local saints from this period include Blandina, Pothinus, and Epipodius, among others. In the second century AD, the great Christian bishop of Lyon
Lyon was the Easterner, Irenaeus.[10] To this day, the archbishop of Lyon
Lyon is still referred to as "Primat des Gaules".[11] Burgundians
Burgundians fleeing the destruction of Worms by the Huns
Huns in 437 were re-settled at Lugdunum. In 443 the Romans established the Kingdom of the Burgundians, and Lugdunum
Lugdunum became its capital in 461. In 843, by the Treaty of Verdun, Lyon
Lyon went to the Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor Lothair I. It later was made part of the Kingdom of Arles. Lyon
Lyon did not come under French control until the 14th century. Modern Lyon[edit] Fernand Braudel remarked, "Historians of Lyon
Lyon are not sufficiently aware of the bi-polarity between Paris
Paris and Lyon, which is a constant structure in French development...from the late Middle Ages to the Industrial Revolution".[12] In the late 15th century, the fairs introduced by Italian merchants made Lyon
Lyon the economic counting house of France. Even the Bourse (treasury), built in 1749, resembled a public bazaar where accounts were settled in the open air. When international banking moved to Genoa, then Amsterdam, Lyon
Lyon remained the banking centre of France. During the Renaissance, the city's development was driven by the silk trade, which strengthened its ties to Italy. Italian influence on Lyon's architecture is still visible among historic buildings.[13] In the later 1400s and 1500s Lyon
Lyon was also a key centre of literary activity and book publishing, both of French writers (such as Maurice Scève, Antoine Heroet, and Louise Labé) and of Italians in exile (such as Luigi Alamanni
Luigi Alamanni and Gian Giorgio Trissino).

Lyon
Lyon under siege in 1793

In 1572, Lyon
Lyon was a scene of mass violence by Catholics against Protestant Huguenots in the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre. Two centuries later, Lyon
Lyon was again convulsed by violence when, during the French Revolution, the citizenry rose up against the National Convention and supported the Girondins. The city was besieged by Revolutionary armies for over two months before surrendering in October 1793. Many buildings were destroyed, especially around the Place Bellecour, while Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois
Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois and Joseph Fouché administered the execution of more than 2,000 people. The Convention ordered that its name be changed to "Liberated City" and a plaque was erected that proclaimed" "Lyons made war on Liberty; Lyons no longer exists." A decade later, Napoleon
Napoleon ordered the reconstruction of all the buildings demolished during this period. The city became an important industrial town during the 19th century. In 1831 and 1834, the canuts (silk workers) of Lyon
Lyon staged two major uprisings for better working conditions and pay. In 1862, the first of Lyon's extensive network of funicular railways began operation. During World War II, Lyon
Lyon was a centre for the occupying Nazi forces, including Klaus Barbie, the infamous "Butcher of Lyon". But the city was as well a stronghold of the French Resistance
French Resistance – the many secret passages known as traboules enabled people to escape Gestapo
Gestapo raids. On 3 September 1944, Lyon
Lyon was liberated by the 1st Free French Division and the Forces Françaises de l'Intérieur. The city is now home to a resistance museum.[14][15] Geography[edit] The Rhône
Rhône and Saône
Saône converge to the south of the historic city centre forming a peninsula – the "Presqu'île" – bounded by two large hills to the west and north and a large plain eastward. Place Bellecour is located on the Presqu'île between the two rivers and is the third-largest public square in France. The broad, pedestrian-only Rue de la République leads north from Place Bellecour. The northern hill is La Croix-Rousse, known as "the hill that works" because it is traditionally home to many small silk workshops, an industry for which the city has long been renowned.[16] The western hill is the Fourvière, known as "the hill that prays" because it is the location for the basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, several convents, and the residence of the Archbishop. The district, Vieux Lyon, also hosts the Tour métallique (a highly visible TV tower, replicating the last stage of the Eiffel Tower) and one of the city's funicular railways.[17] Fourvière, along with portions of the Presqu'île and much of La Croix-Rousse, is designated as a UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site.[18] East of the Rhône
Rhône from the Presqu'île is a large flat area upon which sits much of modern Lyon
Lyon and contains most of the city's population. Situated in this area is the urban centre of La Part-Dieu which clusters the landmark structures Tour Part-Dieu, Tour Oxygène, and Tour Swiss Life, as well as the city's primary railway station, Gare de Lyon-Part-Dieu. North of this district is the sixth arrondissement, which is home to one of Europe's largest urban parks, the Parc de la Tête d'or, as well as Lycée du Parc
Lycée du Parc and Interpol's world headquarters.

Panorama of the inner city of Lyon, taken from the basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière's roof

Climate[edit] Lyon
Lyon has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa), albeit having some characteristics of the oceanic climate (Cfb). The mean temperature in Lyon
Lyon in the coldest month is 3.2 °C (37.8 °F) in January and in the warmest month in July is 22 °C (71.6 °F), hence maintaining its subtropical classification. Precipitation
Precipitation is adequate year-round, at an average of 830 mm (32.7 in), but the winter months are the driest. The highest recorded temperature is 40.5 °C (104.9 °F) on 13 August 2003 while the lowest recorded temperature is −24.6 °C (−12.3 °F) on 22 December 1938.[19]

Climate data for Lyon
Lyon (Bron) 1981–2010 averages, extremes 1920–present

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year

Record high °C (°F) 19.1 (66.4) 21.9 (71.4) 25.7 (78.3) 30.1 (86.2) 34.2 (93.6) 38.4 (101.1) 39.8 (103.6) 40.5 (104.9) 35.8 (96.4) 28.4 (83.1) 23.0 (73.4) 20.2 (68.4) 40.5 (104.9)

Average high °C (°F) 6.4 (43.5) 8.4 (47.1) 13.0 (55.4) 16.3 (61.3) 20.8 (69.4) 24.6 (76.3) 27.7 (81.9) 27.2 (81) 22.7 (72.9) 17.4 (63.3) 10.8 (51.4) 7.1 (44.8) 16.9 (62.4)

Daily mean °C (°F) 3.4 (38.1) 4.8 (40.6) 8.4 (47.1) 11.4 (52.5) 15.8 (60.4) 19.4 (66.9) 22.1 (71.8) 21.6 (70.9) 17.6 (63.7) 13.4 (56.1) 7.5 (45.5) 4.3 (39.7) 12.5 (54.5)

Average low °C (°F) 0.3 (32.5) 1.1 (34) 3.8 (38.8) 6.5 (43.7) 10.7 (51.3) 14.1 (57.4) 16.6 (61.9) 16.0 (60.8) 12.5 (54.5) 9.3 (48.7) 4.3 (39.7) 1.6 (34.9) 8.1 (46.6)

Record low °C (°F) −23.0 (−9.4) −22.5 (−8.5) −10.5 (13.1) −4.4 (24.1) −3.8 (25.2) 2.3 (36.1) 6.1 (43) 4.6 (40.3) 0.2 (32.4) −4.5 (23.9) −9.4 (15.1) −24.6 (−12.3) −24.6 (−12.3)

Average precipitation mm (inches) 47.2 (1.858) 44.1 (1.736) 50.4 (1.984) 74.9 (2.949) 90.8 (3.575) 75.6 (2.976) 63.7 (2.508) 62.0 (2.441) 87.5 (3.445) 98.6 (3.882) 81.9 (3.224) 55.2 (2.173) 831.9 (32.752)

Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 9.0 7.8 8.4 9.3 11.3 8.4 6.9 7.1 7.6 10.2 9.0 9.1 104.1

Average snowy days 5.5 3.9 2.5 1.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 4.6 19.6

Average relative humidity (%) 84 80 74 71 72 70 65 70 76 82 84 86 76.2

Mean monthly sunshine hours 73.9 101.2 170.2 190.5 221.4 254.3 283.0 252.7 194.8 129.6 75.9 54.5 2,001.9

Source #1: Météo France[20][21][22]

Source #2: Infoclimat.fr (humidity, snowy days 1961–1990)[23]

Administration[edit] Main article: Arrondissements of Lyon

Map of the City of Lyon
Lyon divided into 9 arrondissements

Map of the Metropolis of Lyon
Metropolis of Lyon (the city of Lyon
Lyon is in red)

Like Paris
Paris and Marseille, the city of Lyon
Lyon is divided into a number of municipal arrondissements, each of which is identified by a number and has its own council and town hall. Five arrondissements were originally created in 1852, when three neighbouring communes (La Croix-Rousse, La Guillotière, and Vaise) were annexed by Lyon. Between 1867 and 1959, the third arrondissement (which originally covered the whole of the Left Bank of the Rhône) was split three times, creating a new arrondissement in each case. Then, in 1963, the commune of Saint-Rambert-l'Île-Barbe was annexed to Lyon's fifth arrondissement. A year later, in 1964, the fifth was split to create Lyon's 9th – and, to date, final – arrondissement. Within each arrondissement, the recognisable quartiers or neighbourhoods are:

1st arrondissement: Slopes of La Croix-Rousse, Terreaux, Martinière/St-Vincent 2nd arrondissement: Cordeliers, Bellecour, Ainay, Perrache, Confluence, Sainte-Blandine 3rd arrondissement: Guillotière (north), Préfecture, Part-Dieu, Villette, Dauphiné/Sans Souci, Montchat, Grange Blanche (north), Monplaisir (north) 4th arrondissement: Plateau de la Croix-Rousse, Serin 5th arrondissement: Vieux Lyon
Vieux Lyon (Saint-Paul, Saint-Jean, Saint-Georges), Saint-Just, Saint-Irénée,[24] Fourvière, Point du Jour, Ménival, Battières, Champvert (south) 6th arrondissement: Brotteaux, Bellecombe, Parc de la Tête d'or, Cité Internationale 7th arrondissement: Guillotière (south), Jean Macé, Gerland 8th arrondissement: Monplaisir (south), Bachut, États-Unis, Grand Trou/Moulin à Vent, Grange Blanche (south), Laënnec, Mermoz, Monplaisir-la-Plaine 9th arrondissement: Vaise, Duchère, Rochecardon, St-Rambert-l'Île-Barbe, Gorge de Loup, Observance, Champvert (north)

Geographically, Lyon's two main rivers, the Saône
Saône and the Rhône, divide the arrondissements into three groups:

To the west of the Saône, the fifth arrondissement covers the old city (Vieux Lyon), Fourvière
Fourvière hill and the plateau beyond. The 9th is immediately to the north, and stretches from Gorge de Loup, through Vaise
Vaise to the neighbouring suburbs of Écully, Champagne-au-Mont-d'Or, Saint-Didier-au-Mont-d'Or, Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d'Or and Collonges-au-Mont-d'Or. Between the two rivers, on the Presqu'île are the second, first, and fourth arrondissements. The second includes most of the city centre, including Bellecour and Perrache railway station, and reaches as far as the confluence of the two rivers. The first is directly to the north of the second and covers part of the city centre (including the Hôtel de Ville) and the slopes of La Croix-Rousse. To the north of the Boulevard is the fourth arrondissement, which covers the Plateau of La Croix-Rousse, up to its boundary with the commune of Caluire-et-Cuire. To the east of the Rhône, are the third, sixth, seventh, and eighth arrondissements.

Mayors[edit]

Mayor Term start Term end Party

Antoine Gailleton 1881 1900

Victor Augagneur 1900 000000001905-10-30-000030 October 1905

PRS

Édouard Herriot 000000001905-10-30-000030 October 1905 000000001940-09-20-000020 September 1940

Radical

Georges Cohendy 000000001940-09-20-000020 September 1940 1941

Nominated and dismissed by Vichy

Georges Villiers 1941 1942

Nominated and dismissed by Vichy

Pierre-Louis-André Bertrand 1942 1944

Nominated by Vichy

Justin Godart 1944 000000001945-05-18-000018 May 1945

Radical

Édouard Herriot 000000001945-05-18-000018 May 1945 000000001957-03-26-000026 March 1957

Radical

Pierre Montel, ad interim 000000001957-03-26-000026 March 1957 000000001957-04-14-000014 April 1957

Radical

Louis Pradel 000000001957-04-14-000014 April 1957 000000001976-11-27-000027 November 1976

Centre-right

Armand Tapernoux, ad interim 000000001976-11-27-000027 November 1976 000000001976-12-05-00005 December 1976

Independent

Francisque Collomb 000000001976-12-05-00005 December 1976 000000001989-03-24-000024 March 1989

UDF

Michel Noir 000000001989-03-24-000024 March 1989 000000001995-06-25-000025 June 1995

RPR

Raymond Barre 000000001995-06-25-000025 June 1995 000000002001-03-25-000025 March 2001

UDF

Gérard Collomb 000000002001-03-25-000025 March 2001 000000002017-07-17-000017 July 2017

Georges Képénékian 000000002017-07-17-000017 July 2017 Incumbent

Culture[edit]

Historic Site of Lyons Lyon

Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière

UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site

Location Urban Community of Lyon, Metropolis of Lyon, Rhône, arrondissement of Lyon, France
France

Coordinates 45°45′32″N 4°50′29″E / 45.7589°N 4.8414°E / 45.7589; 4.8414

Area 47.87 km2 (515,300,000 sq ft)

Criteria Cultural: ii, iv

Reference 872

Inscription 1998 (22nd Session)

Website www.lyon.fr

Location of Lyon

[edit on Wikidata]

Since the Middle Ages, the residents of the region have spoken several dialects of Franco-Provençal. The Lyonnais
Lyonnais dialect was replaced by the French language as the importance of the city grew. However some "frenchified" Franco-Provençal
Franco-Provençal words can also be heard in the French of the Lyonnais, who call their little boys and girls "gones" and "fenottes" for example.[25]

The Lumière brothers pioneered cinema in the town in 1895. The Institut Lumière, built as Auguste Lumiere's house, and a fascinating piece of architecture in its own right, holds many of their first inventions and other early cinematic and photographic artefacts. 8 December each year is marked by the Festival of Lights (la Fête des lumières), a celebration of thanks to the Virgin Mary, who purportedly saved the city from a deadly plague in the Middle Ages. During the event, the local population places candles (lumignons) at their windows and the city of Lyon
Lyon organises impressive large-scale light shows onto the sides of important Lyonnais
Lyonnais monuments, such as the mediaeval Cathédrale St-Jean. The church of Saint Francis of Sales is famous for its large and unaltered Cavaillé-Coll pipe organ, attracting audiences from around the world. The Opéra Nouvel
Opéra Nouvel (New Opera House) is the home of the Opéra National de Lyon. The original opera house was re-designed by the distinguished French architect Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel between 1985 and 1993 and is named after him. Lyon
Lyon is also the French capital of "trompe l'œil" walls, a very ancient tradition. Many are to be seen around the city. This old tradition is now finding a contemporary expression, for example in the art of Guillaume Bottazzi.[26][27] The Brothers of the Sacred Heart, a Roman Catholic congregation that operates schools in Europe and North America, was founded in Lyon
Lyon in 1821. The African Museum of Lyon is one of the oldest museums situated in Lyon.[28] The Museum of Resistance and Deportation looks at the various individuals prominent in the Resistance movement in World War II. The building is strongly linked to Klaus Barbie. Lyon
Lyon sees itself as the centre of the French resistance and many members were shot in Place Bellecour in the town centre. The exhibition is largely a series of mini-biographies of those involved. The unusual project Lyon
Lyon Dubai City, a reproduction of some districts of Lyon
Lyon in Dubai, is a major point for tourism in Lyon. Lyon
Lyon is a pilot city of the Council of Europe
Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural cities programme.

UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site[edit] The Historic Site of Lyons was designated a UNESCO
UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. In its designation, UNESCO
UNESCO cited the "exceptional testimony to the continuity of urban settlement over more than two millennia on a site of great commercial and strategic significance."[18] The specific regions comprising the Historic Site include the Roman district and Fourvière, the Renaissance
Renaissance district (Vieux Lyon), the silk district (slopes of Croix-Rousse), and the Presqu'île, which features architecture from the 12th century to modern times.[29] Both Vieux Lyon
Vieux Lyon and the slopes of Croix-Rousse are known for their narrow passageways (named traboules) that pass through buildings and link streets on either side. The first examples of traboules are thought to have been built in Lyon
Lyon in the 4th century.[30] The traboules allowed the inhabitants to get from their homes to the Saône
Saône quickly and allowed the canuts on the Croix-Rousse hill to get from their workshops to the textile merchants at the foot of the hill. Gastronomy[edit] Main article: Lyonnaise cuisine Lyon
Lyon has a long and chronicled culinary arts tradition. The noted food critic Curnonsky
Curnonsky referred to the city as "the gastronomic capital of the world",[31] a claim repeated by later writers such as Bill Buford.[32] Renowned 3-star Michelin chefs such as Marie Bourgeois[33] and Eugénie Brazier[34] developed Lyonnaise cuisine
Lyonnaise cuisine into a national phenomenon favoured by the French elite; a tradition which Paul Bocuse later turned into a worldwide success.[35] The bouchon is a traditional Lyonnais
Lyonnais restaurant that serves local fare such as sausages, duck pâté or roast pork, along with local wines. Two of France's best known wine-growing regions are located near the city: the Beaujolais region to the north and the Côtes du Rhône
Rhône region to the south. Another Lyon
Lyon tradition is a type of brunch food called "mâchons", made of local charcuterie and usually accompanied by Beaujolais red wine. Mâchons were the customary meal of the canuts, the city's silk workers, who ate a late-morning meal after they finished their shifts in the factories.[36] Other traditional local dishes include coq au vin; quenelle; gras double; salade lyonnaise (lettuce with bacon, croûtons and a poached egg); and the sausage-based rosette lyonnaise and andouillette. Popular local confections include marron glacé and coussin de Lyon. Cervelle de canut
Cervelle de canut (literally, "silk worker's brains") is a cheese spread/dip made of a base of fromage blanc, seasoned with chopped herbs, shallots, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar. Sport[edit]

Parc Olympique Lyonnais

Lyon
Lyon is home to the football club Olympique Lyonnais
Lyonnais (OL), whose men's team plays in Ligue 1
Ligue 1 and has won the championship of that competition seven times, all consecutively from 2002 to 2008).[37] OL played until December 2015 at the 43,000-seat Stade de Gerland, which also hosted matches of the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Since 2016, the team has played at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais, a 59,000-seat stadium located in the eastern suburb of Décines-Charpieu.[38] OL operates a women's team, Olympique Lyonnais
Lyonnais Féminin, which competes in and dominates Division 1 Féminine. They are on a streak of 11 top-flight championships (2007–present), and additionally claim the four titles won by the original incarnation of FC Lyon, a women's football club that merged into OL in 2004 (the current FC Lyon
Lyon was founded in 2009). The OL women have also won the UEFA Women's Champions League
UEFA Women's Champions League four times, including the two most recent editions in 2016 and 2017. Lyon
Lyon has a rugby union team, Lyon
Lyon OU, in the Top 14, which moved into Stade de Gerland
Stade de Gerland full-time in 2017–18. In addition, Lyon
Lyon has a rugby league side called Lyon Villeurbanne
Lyon Villeurbanne that plays in the French rugby league championship. The club's home is the Stade Georges Lyvet in Villeurbanne. Lyon
Lyon is also home to the Lyon
Lyon Hockey Club, an ice hockey team that competes in France's national ice hockey league. The Patinoire Charlemagne is the seat of Club des Sports de Glace de Lyon, the club of Olympic ice dancing champions Marina Anissina
Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat, and world champions Isabelle Delobel
Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Shoenfelder.[39] Villeurbanne
Villeurbanne also has a basketball team, ASVEL, that plays at the Astroballe arena. Street art[edit] Since 2000, Birdy Kids, a group of graffiti artists from the city, has decorated several random buildings and walls along the Lyon
Lyon ring road. In 2012, the artist collective has been chosen to represent the city as its cultural ambassadors.[40] Economy[edit]

La Part-Dieu, the city's central business district

The GDP of Lyon
Lyon was 74 billion euro in 2012,[41] and it's the second richest city in France
France after Paris. Lyon
Lyon and its region Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes represent one of the most important economies in Europe and, according to Loughborough University, can be compared to Philadelphia, Mumbai or Athens with regard to its international position. The city of Lyon
Lyon is working in partnership to more easily enable the establishment of new headquarters in the territory (ADERLY, Chambre du commerce et d'industrie, Grand Lyon...). High-tech industries such as biotechnology, software development, video game (Arkane Studios; Ivory Tower; Eden Games; EA France; Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe), and internet services are also growing. Other important sectors include medical research and technology, non-profit institutions, and universities. Lyon
Lyon is home to the P4-Inserm–ean Merieux Laboratory which conducts top-level vaccine research.[42] The city is home to the headquarters of many large companies such as Groupe SEB, Sanofi Pasteur, Renault Trucks, Norbert Dentressangle, LCL S.A., Descours & Cabaud, Merial, Point S, BioMérieux, Iveco Bus, Compagnie Nationale du Rhône, GL Events, April Group, Boiron, Feu Vert, Panzani, Babolat, Euronews, Lyon
Lyon Airports, LVL Medical, and inter-governmental agencies IARC, Interpol. The specialisation of some sectors of activities has led to the creation of many main business centres: La Part-Dieu, located in the 3rd arrondissement is the second biggest business quarter after La Défense
La Défense in Paris
Paris with over 1,600,000 m2 (17,222,256.67 sq ft) of office space and services and more than 55,000 jobs.[43] Cité Internationale, created by the architect Renzo Piano
Renzo Piano is located in the border of the Parc de la Tête d'Or in the 6th arrondissement. The worldwide headquarters of Interpol
Interpol is located there. The district of Confluence, in the south of the historic centre, is a new pole of economical and cultural development. Tourism is an important part of the Lyon
Lyon economy, with one billion euros in 2007 and 3.5 million hotel-nights in 2006 provided by non-residents. Approximately 60% of tourists visit for business, with the rest for leisure. In January 2009, Lyon
Lyon ranked first in France
France for hostels business. The festivals most important for attracting tourists are the Fête des lumières, the Nuits de Fourvière
Fourvière every summer, the Biennale d'art contemporain and the Nuits Sonores. Demographics[edit]

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2017)

The population of the city of Lyon
Lyon proper was 491,268 at the January 2011 census,[1] 14% of whom were born outside Metropolitan France.[44]

Main sights[edit] Antiquity[edit]

Lyon
Lyon in the background with Fourvière
Fourvière on the left

The Roman ruins on the hillside near the Fourvière
Fourvière Basilica with the Ancient Theatre of Fourvière, the Odeon of Lyon
Odeon of Lyon and the accompanying Gallo-Roman Museum; Amphitheatre of the Three Gauls, Roman ruins of an amphitheatre.

Middle Ages and Renaissance[edit]

Cathedral of St. John

Cathedral of St. John, a mediaeval church with architectural elements of the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, also the principal religious structure in the city and the seat of the Archbishop
Archbishop of Lyon; Basilica of St-Martin-d'Ainay, one of the rare surviving Romanesque basilica-style churches in Lyon; Église Saint-Paul, Romanesque (12th and 13th century) and Gothic (15th–16th century) church; Église Saint-Bonaventure, 14th- and 15th-century Gothic church; Église Saint-Nizier, Gothic church from the 15th century, having a doorway carved in the 16th century by Philibert Delorme; Vieux Lyon
Vieux Lyon (English: Old Lyon) area, Mediaeval and Renaissance
Renaissance quarter of the town, with shops, dining and cobbled streets; The many Renaissance
Renaissance hôtels particuliers of the Old Lyon
Lyon quarter, such as the Hôtel de Bullioud, were also built by Philibert Delorme.

17th and 18th centuries[edit]

City Hall towering over the Place des Terreaux

City Hall on the Place des Terreaux, built by architects Jules Hardouin-Mansart and Robert de Cotte; Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon, fine arts museum housed in a former convent of the 17th century, including the Baroque chapelle Saint-Pierre; Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon
Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon (17th and 18th century), historical hospital with a baroque chapel; Temple du Change
Temple du Change (17th and 18th century), former stock exchange of Lyon, Protestant temple since the 18th century; Place Bellecour, one of the largest town squares in Europe; Chapelle de la Trinité
Chapelle de la Trinité (1622), the first Baroque chapel built in Lyon, and part of the former École de la Trinité, now Collège-lycée Ampère; Église Saint-Polycarpe
Église Saint-Polycarpe (1665–1670), Classical church; Église Saint-Just (16th to 18th century), Classical church; Saint-Bruno des Chartreux
Saint-Bruno des Chartreux (17th and 18th century), church, masterpiece of Baroque architecture; Église Notre Dame Saint-Vincent
Église Notre Dame Saint-Vincent (18th century), Neo-classical church.

19th century and modern city[edit]

Overview on Lyon
Lyon during Fête des Lumières

Opéra Nouvel
Opéra Nouvel (1831), renovated in 1993 by Jean Nouvel; Théâtre des Célestins
Théâtre des Célestins (1877), designed by Gaspard André; Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, large 19th-century basilica on the top of Fourvière
Fourvière Hill; Tour métallique de Fourvière
Fourvière (1894); La Mouche Cattle Market and Abbatoir (1914, 1928), designed by Tony Garnier; Sainte Marie de La Tourette
Sainte Marie de La Tourette monastery (1960) designed by Le Corbusier; Saint-Exupéry International Airport (formerly Satolas Airport), designed by Guillaume Gilbert; Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry
Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry (1994) by Santiago Calatrava; Palais des congrès de Lyon
Palais des congrès de Lyon (1998), designed by Renzo Piano
Renzo Piano and a group of buildings for various functions; Tour du Crédit Lyonnais; Tour Oxygène; Tour Incity.

Museums[edit]

Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon
Musée des beaux-arts de Lyon (Fine Arts Museum), main museum of the city and one of the largest art galleries in France. Housed in the "Palais Saint Pierre", a former 17th-century convent, it displays a major collection of paintings by artists (including Tintoretto; Paolo Veronese; Nicolas Poussin; Rubens; Rembrandt; Zurbaran; Canaletto; Delacroix; Monet; Gauguin; Van Gogh; Cézanne; Matisse; Picasso; Francis Bacon...); collections of sculptures, drawings and printings, decorative arts, Roman and Greek antiquities; the second largest collection of Egyptian antiquities in France
France after that of the Louvre; and a medal cabinet of 50.000 medals and coins. The Gallo-Roman Museum displaying many valuable objects and artworks found on the site of Roman Lyon
Lyon (Lugdunum) such as Circus Games Mosaic, Coligny calendar
Coligny calendar and the Taurobolic Altar; African Museum of Lyon; Centre d'histoire de la résistance et de la déportation; Musée des Confluences, new museum of sciences and anthropology which opened its doors on 20 December 2014. La Sucrière, contemporary art centre; Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon
Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon houses the "Musée des Hospices Civils", a permanent exhibit tracing the history and practice of medicine from the Middle Ages to modern times; Musée des Tissus et des Arts décoratifs, decorative arts and textile museum. It holds one of the world's largest textile collections with 2,500,000 works; Musée d'art contemporain de Lyon, contemporary art museum; Musée Gadagne, museum of the history of Lyon
Lyon housed in a historic building in Vieux Lyon. Also includes a large collection of marionnettes; Musée des Automates, museum of automated puppets in Vieux Lyon, open since 1991.

Parks and gardens[edit] Main article: Parks in Lyon

The lake in the Parc de la Tête d'or

Parc de la Tête d'or, (literally, Golden Head Park), in central Lyon is the largest urban park in France
France at 117 hectares. Located in the 6th arrondissement, it features a large lake on which boating takes place during the summer months. Jardin botanique de Lyon
Jardin botanique de Lyon (8 hectares), included in the Parc de la Tête d'Or, is a municipal botanical garden and is open weekdays without charge. The garden was established in 1857 as a successor to earlier botanical gardens dating to 1796, and now describes itself as France's largest municipal botanical garden. Parc de Gerland, in the south of the city (80 hectares); Parc des hauteurs, in Fourvières; Parc de Miribel-Jonage (2200 hectares); Parc de Lacroix-Laval
Parc de Lacroix-Laval (115 hectares); Parc de Parilly
Parc de Parilly (178 hectares).

Education[edit] Universities and tertiary education[edit]

Université Lumière

École Centrale de Lyon; École Normale Supérieure de Lyon EM Lyon
Lyon (École de Management de Lyon); ECE Lyon
Lyon (École de Commerce Européenne de Lyon); Institut d'études politiques de Lyon
Institut d'études politiques de Lyon (Sciences Po Lyon); CPE Lyon; ECAM Lyon
Lyon (École Catholique d'Arts et Métiers de Lyon); EPITECH; EPITA; ENTPE (École Nationale des Travaux Publiques de l'État); ESME-Sudria; École des Beaux-Arts; E-Artsup; Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon
Lyon (located in Villeurbanne); Polytech Lyon
Lyon located in Villeurbanne; Institut supérieur européen de gestion group; ISARA (Institut Supérieur d'Agriculture Rhône
Rhône Alpes); Institution des Chartreux; Université Claude Bernard ( Lyon
Lyon 1); Université Lumière ( Lyon
Lyon 2); Université Jean Moulin ( Lyon
Lyon 3); IAE (Institut d'Administration des Entreprises de Lyon); Catholic University of Lyon; ESDES Business School; IDRAC (International School of Management); Wesford Graduate Business School; IFAG (Business Management School); Institut supérieur européen de formation par l'action; Le Lycée du Parc; La Martiniere Lyon; Web@cademie; CEESO (Centre Européen d'Enseignement Supérieur de l'Ostéopathie); Bellecour, Ecoles D'Arts.

Primary and secondary schools[edit] There are some international private schools in the Lyon
Lyon area, including:

Cité Scolaire Internationale de Lyon
Cité Scolaire Internationale de Lyon or the Lycée de Gerland;

Includes the Section Japonaises (リヨン・ジェルラン補習授業校 Riyon Jeruran Hoshū Jugyō Kō " Lyon
Lyon Gerland Japanese Supplementary School"), which the Japanese Ministry of Education
Japanese Ministry of Education (MEXT) counts as a part-time Japanese supplementary school[45]

Ombrosa; International School of Lyon in nearby Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon; Montessori School of Lyon.

Supplementary education[edit] Other Japanese supplementary schools:

The Association Pour le Developpement de la Langue et de la Culture Japonaises (ADLCJ; リヨン補習授業校 Riyon Hoshū Jugyō Kō) is held in the Maison Berty Albrecht in Villeurbanne, near Lyon.[45] It was formed in 1987.[46] It serves Japanese expatriate children who wish to continue their Japanese education whilst abroad.

Transport[edit] Further information: Lyon
Lyon Metro, Lyon
Lyon tramway, Trolleybuses in Lyon, Buses in Lyon, Transport in Rhône-Alpes, and TER Rhône
Rhône Alpes

Network of highways around Lyon

Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport, located east of Lyon, serves as a base for domestic and international flights. It is a key transport facility for the entire Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes region, with coach links to other cities in the area. The in-house train station Gare de Lyon
Lyon Saint-Exupéry connects the airport to the nationwide TGV
TGV network. The Rhônexpress tram monopoly links the airport with the business quarter of La Part Dieu in less than 30 minutes, and offers connections with Underground A, Tramway T1, T3 & T4, and bus lines. Lyon
Lyon public transport Sytrail offers no service despite a bus service operating to a nearby suburb. The regular price of public transport is €1.90, as opposed to €15 one way for the Rhonexpress. In the suburb of Bron, the smaller Lyon- Bron
Bron Airport provides an alternative for domestic aviation. Lyon
Lyon has two major railway stations: Lyon
Lyon Part-Dieu, which was built to accommodate the TGV, and Lyon
Lyon Perrache, an older station that now provides mostly regional service. Smaller railway stations include Gorge-de-Loup, Vaise, Vénissieux, Saint-Paul and Jean Macé. Lyon
Lyon was the first city to be connected to Paris
Paris by the TGV
TGV in 1981. Since that time the TGV
TGV train network has expanded and links Lyon
Lyon directly to Perpignan, Toulouse, Nice, Marseille, Strasbourg, Nantes
Nantes and Lille. International trains operate directly to Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Turin, Geneva, Frankfurt, Luxembourg, Brussels and London. The city is at the heart of a dense road network and is located at the meeting point of several highways: A6 (to Paris); A7 (to Marseille); A42 (to Geneva); and A43 (to Grenoble). The city is now bypassed by the A46. A double motorway tunnel passes under Fourvière, connecting the A6 and the A7 autoroutes, both forming the "Autoroute du Soleil". Lyon
Lyon is served by the Eurolines
Eurolines intercity coach organisation. Its Lyon terminal is located at the city's Perrache railway station, which serves as an intermodal transportation hub that also includes tramways, local and regional trains and buses, the terminus of Metro line A, of the Tramway T2, the bicycle service Vélo'v, and taxis.

Public transport map

The Transports en commun lyonnais
Transports en commun lyonnais (TCL), Lyon's public transit system, consisting of metro, tramways and buses, serves 62 communes of the Lyon
Lyon metropolis. The network has four lines ( A B C D ), 42 stations, and runs with a frequency of up to a train every 2 minutes. There are five Lyon
Lyon tram lines ( T1 T2 T3 T4 T5) since April 2009: T1 from Debourg in the south to IUT-Feyssine in the north, Tram T2 from Perrache railway station in the south-west to Saint-Priest in the south-east, Tram T3 from Part-Dieu to Meyzieu, Tram T4 from 'Hôptial Feyzin Venissieux' to Gaston Berger. Tram T5 from Grange Blanche, in the south-east to Eurexpo in the south-wast. The Lyon
Lyon bus network consists of the Lyon
Lyon trolleybus system, motorbuses, and coaches for areas outside the centre. There are also two funicular lines from Vieux Lyon
Vieux Lyon to Saint-Just and Fourvière. The ticketing system is relatively simple as the city has only one public transport operator, the SYTRAL. The public transit system has been complemented since 2005 by Vélo'v, a bicycle network providing a low-cost service where bicycles can be hired and returned at any of 340 stations throughout the city. Borrowing a bicycle for less than 30 minutes is free. Free rental time can be extended for another 30 minutes at any station. Lyon
Lyon was the first city in France
France to introduce this bicycle renting system. In 2011 the Auto'lib car rental service was introduced; it works much the same way as the Velo'v but for cars. The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Lyon
Lyon on a weekday is 45 minutes. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 11 min, while 17% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is 4.7 km, while 4% travel for over 12 km in a single direction. [47] International relations[edit] Lyon
Lyon is a pilot city of the Council of Europe
Council of Europe and the European Commission "Intercultural cities" program.[48] Sister cities[edit] See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in France Lyon
Lyon is twinned with:[49]

Aleppo, Syria[49] Beersheba, Israel[49] Beirut, Lebanon
Lebanon [49][50] Birmingham, United Kingdom, since 1951[49][51][52] Craiova, Romania, since 1992[49] Frankfurt am Main, Germany, since 1960[49][53] Guangzhou, China, since 1988[49][54] Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, since 1997[49][55] Leipzig, Germany, since 1981[49][56] Łódź, Poland, since 1991[49][57] Milan, Italy, since 1966[49][58] Minsk, Belarus, since 1976[49][59] Montréal, Canada, since 1979[49] Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso[49] Pécs, Hungary[49] Saint Petersburg, Russia, since 1993[49][60] St. Louis, United States, since 1975[49] Turin, Italy[49][61] Yerevan, Armenia, since 1992[49][62] Yokohama, Japan, since 1959[49][63]

Gallery[edit] The lion, symbol of the city, is a common sight in Lyon:

A lion door knocker in Lyon

The Lion Place Sathonay

The lion at Maison des Avocats

A real lion in the Parc de la Tête d'or

The lion on the seal of Lyon

Other images :

The théâtre des Célestins.

The théâtre gallo-romain.

Mullioned windows, Renaissance
Renaissance house, climb the Great Coast

Maison des avocats in the Vieux Lyon

The Tour Rose in the Vieux Lyon

Parc de la Tête d'or

Belltower of Charity

Nave of Church of Saint-Bruno des Chartreux

Faculties and the University Bridge

The Rhône, Pont Lafayette

Lyon
Lyon from Fourvière
Fourvière hill, October 2015