Quimper (, ; ; or ) is a commune and

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

of the

Finistère Finistère (, ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest, France, Brest. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.department of

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

in northwestern

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 ...

Administration

Quimper is the prefecture (capital) of the Finistère department.

Geography

The city of Quimper was built at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of the Steir, Odet and Jet rivers. Routes Nationale 165, D785, D765 and D783 were designed to intersect here, northwest of

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

, west of

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

, and west-southwest of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Climate

Quimper has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cfb''), with an average annual temperature of . The temperatures are highest, on average, in August, at around , and lowest in February, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Quimper was on 30 June 1976; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 13 January 1987. The average annual rainfall is , with December being the wettest month.

Etymology

The name ''Quimper'' comes from the Breton ''kemper'', meaning "confluent", a reference to the meeting of the three rivers of the area.

History

Quimper is the ancient capital of Cornouaille, Brittany's most "traditional" region, and has a distinctive Breton-Celtic character, from

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

and dance traditions to linguistics and genetics; indeed, the historical name is also somewhat similar to "

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

", a region in

southern England Southern England, also known as the South of England or the South, is a sub-national part of England. Officially, it is made up of the southern, south-western and part of the eastern parts of England, consisting of the statistical regions of ...

with distant cultural similarities. The word Quimper comes from the Breton word ''kemper'' (cognate to Welsh '' cymer''), meaning "confluence". The town developed at the confluence of the rivers Le Steir and L'Odet. Shops and flags celebrate the region's Celtic heritage. Quimper was originally settled during Roman times, when the area now known as France was known as

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

. By AD 495, the town had become a

Bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

. It subsequently became the capital of the counts of Cornouailles. In the eleventh century, it was united with the

Duchy of Brittany The Duchy of Brittany (, ; ) was a medieval feudal state that existed between approximately 939 and 1547. Its territory covered the northwestern peninsula of France, bordered by the Bay of Biscay to the west, and the English Channel to the north. ...

. During the

War of the Breton Succession The War of the Breton Succession (, ) or Breton Civil War was a conflict between the Counts of Blois and the Montfort of Brittany, Montforts of Brittany for control of the Duchy of Brittany, then a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was fou ...

(1341–1364), the town suffered considerable ruin. In 1364, the duchy passed to the House of Montfort. The town itself has a " rustic" atmosphere, with

footbridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...

s spanning the rivers that flow through it. The Church of Locmaria, a Romanesque structure, dates from the eleventh century. The Cathedral of Saint-Corentin, with its Gothic-style

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

, was constructed between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries, and is the oldest Gothic structure in lower Brittany. Its twin towers are high; its spires were added in the nineteenth century. The fifteenth-century

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows are considered exceptional. The cathedral is dedicated to the 5th-century bishop Corentin, Quimper's first. To the cathedral's west are the pedestrianised streets of Vieux Quimper (Old Quimper), which has a wide array of ''crêperies'', half-timbered houses, and shops and cafés. Near the Episcopal palace (which now holds the ''Musée départemental Breton'', devoted to regional history,

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

ethnology Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). Sci ...

and

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

) are the ruins of the town's fifteenth-century walls. Nearby is the ''Musée des beaux-arts de Quimper''. The museum has a nineteenth-century façade and an entirely-rebuilt interior. It houses a collection of 14th to 21st-century paintings, including works by François Boucher,

Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot ( , , ; 16 July 1796 – 22 February 1875), or simply Camille Corot, was a French Landscape art, landscape and Portraitist, portrait painter as well as a printmaking, printmaker in etching. A pivotal figure in ...

, Jean-Baptiste Oudry and

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish painting, Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged comp ...

, along with

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...

es by such

Pont-Aven School Pont-Aven School (; ) encompasses works of art influenced by the Breton town of Pont-Aven and its surroundings. Originally the term applied to works created in the artists' colony at Pont-Aven, which started to emerge in the 1850s and lasted until ...

painters as Émile Bernard, Maurice Denis, Georges Lacombe, Maxime Maufra and Paul Sérusier. The town's best-known product is Quimper ''faience'', a tin-glazed

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

. It has been made here since 1690, using the bold provincial designs of Jean-Baptiste Bousquet. The city has a museum devoted to faience. Quimper has also been known for

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

and

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

work,

galvanised Galvanization ( also spelled galvanisation) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip galvanizing, in which the parts are coated by submerging them in a bath o ...

ironware,

hosiery Hosiery, (, ) also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the foot, feet and human leg, legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also ...

, leather, paper and woollen goods, as well as being a gastronomic destination for its varied regional dishes. Adolphe Harré was a French sailor from Quimper who died during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

along with the 31 crew members of the SS Longwy, a French merchant vessel that was torpedoed off the coast of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

in 1917. Harré’s body washed ashore in Scotland and was buried in Doune Cemetery in

Girvan Girvan (, "mouth of the River Girvan") is a burgh and harbour town in Carrick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Girvan is situated on the east coast of the Firth of Clyde, with a population of about 6,450. It lies south of Ayr, and north of St ...

, South Ayrshire. On 12 October 2024, a memorial stele was inaugurated at the Cemetery to honour Harré and the crew of the SS Longwy. The ceremony was attended by local authorities, including the First Minister of Scotland, members of the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

, and dignitaries from both Scotland and France. A wreath was laid on behalf of the mayoress of Quimper and the city, symbolizing the historic ties between the French and Scottish communities, and commemorating the sacrifice of the sailors.

Population

The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of Quimper proper, in its geography at the given years. The commune of Quimper absorbed the former communes of Ergué-Armel, Kerfunteun and Penhars in 1959. Its inhabitants are called ''Quimpérois''.

Breton language

The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhoneg on 6 February 2008, to revive the teaching and use of Breton, the historic Celtic language of the region. In 2008, 4.61% of primary-school children attended bilingual schools.

Education

Quimper has several schools. These include two Diwan pre-schools, two Diwan primary schools and one Diwan collège (all specialise in use of Breton). In total, 287 students here attended a Diwan school in 2003–2004.

Festivals

While many French festivals are held in the summer season, Quimper has a winter festival: ''Les Hivernautes''. In the summer, concerts are held on street corners, with pipers and accordion players. The Festival de Cornouaille, a cultural festival, is typically held in the last week of July.

Tourism

Points of interest in Quimper include: *

Quimper Cathedral Quimper Cathedral, formally the Cathedral of Saint Corentin (, ), is a Roman Catholic cathedral and national monument of Brittany in France. It is located in the town of Quimper, Finistère, Quimper and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese o ...

and the nearby statue of Gradlon (looking in the direction of Ys) * Musée des Beaux-Arts de Quimper (near the cathedral) *

Faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white Ceramic glaze, pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an stannous oxide, oxide of tin to the Slip (c ...

museum * The Hôtel de Ville

Transport

Public transport in Quimper is provided by QUB. The network consists of seven urban bus routes and 16 suburban bus routes. During the summer months of July and August, an additional "beach" bus route is open to service. The Gare de Quimper is the terminus of a TGV high-speed train line from Paris, which passes through

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

and

Vannes Vannes (; , , ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Morbihan, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany, northwestern mainland France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic ...

. Journey duration is approximately 3 hours 40 minutes. In addition, the following destinations are served by the TER Bretagne (the regional train network): * Quimper – Brest (1 hour 9 minutes) * Quimper – Rennes (2 hours 15 minutes) Commercial service at Quimper–Bretagne Airport has been terminated since November 2023.

Notable people

Quimper is the birthplace of: * Guillaume-Hyacinthe Bougeant (1690–1743), Jesuit author * Louis Billouart, Chevalier de Kerlérec (1704–1770), last French governor of Louisiana * René Cardaliaguet (1875–1950), priest and writer * Élie Catherine Fréron (1718–1776), critic and controversialist * Franciscus Lé Livec de Trésurin (1726–1792), French

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

* Yves-Joseph de Kerguelen-Trémarec (1734–1797), explorer, admiral, discoverer of the Kerguelen archipelago * René-Marie Madec (1736–1784), adventurer,

Nawab Nawab is a royal title indicating a ruler, often of a South Asian state, in many ways comparable to the Western title of Prince. The relationship of a Nawab to the Emperor of India has been compared to that of the Kingdom of Saxony, Kings of ...

of India. See also René Madec * Guillaume François Laennec (1748–1822), French physician * René Laennec (1781–1826), physician, inventor of the

stethoscope The stethoscope is a medicine, medical device for auscultation, or listening to internal sounds of an animal or human body. It typically has a small disc-shaped resonator that is placed against the skin, with either one or two tubes connected t ...

* Max Jacob (1876–1944), poet, painter, writer and critic * Corentin Louis Kervran (1901–1983), scientist * Philippe Poupon (born 1954), sailor * William Stanger (born 1985), footballer * Jacques Villeglé (1926–2022), mixed-media artist * Jean-Claude Andro (1937–2000), novelist * Jessica Cérival (born 1982), athlete * Dan Ar Braz (b. 1949), guitarist * Anne Quemere (b. 1966), sailor and sportswoman * Clémence Quélennec (b.1991) singer and composer

Twin towns – sister cities

Quimper is twinned with: *

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

, Ireland * Remscheid, Germany * Laurium, Greece * Ourense, Spain * Yantai, China *

Foggia Foggia (, ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere delle Puglie, Tavoliere, also know ...

, Italy

References

External links

Official city council's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quimper Communes of Finistère Prefectures in France