What You Need to Know About the Drôme Department
Here is department 26 of France, named the Drôme department. It is part of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and is also the southernmost department of that region. It is named after a river that runs through its center.
Originally, Drôme is located where Saint-Vallier is. Currently, its population numbers 508,005 inhabitants and its area is 6,530 km2, which means the population density per km2 is 79, making the Drôme department the 53rd most populous department in France.
In fact, Drôme is among the 83 departments that were initially created on French territory. During that early time, the territory occupied by this department was the province of Dauphiné. It was only in 1792 that the department acquired new territory: the commune of Carpentras, which reaches the borders of Bouches-du-Rhône.
One year later, the Carpentras department ceased to exist and its territory was taken over by the Vaucluse department, which is why the borders of the Drôme department are as they are today.
As it is a department of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, its sub-prefectures are Die and Nyons, and its prefecture is called Valence. Furthermore, the Drôme department is divided into 3 arrondissements, which are further subdivided into 19 cantons and 363 communes.
What Are the Neighboring Departments of the Drôme Department?
Since it is a department belonging to the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, the neighboring departments of Drôme are: the Hautes-Alpes department and the Alpes de Haute Provence department, both bordering it to the east. Then, there is the Vaucluse department bordering it to the south. Finally, the Loire department borders it at its northwestern tip.
What Is the Climate Like in the Drôme Department?
Due to its geography, the Drôme department generally has an oceanic climate, meaning the climate becomes continental as you move northward, and in the south, the climate is more Mediterranean.
Here are the various climatic zones of the Drôme department:
First, in the north, there are the hills of the northern part of Drôme. Here, the climate is both oceanic and continental. This results in precipitation throughout the year, sometimes falling in autumn or spring. There are also thunderstorms that may occur in summer along with wind. The lowest temperature for this zone is 3 °C and the highest is 21 °C. Moreover, here, precipitation occurs more in summer.
In the eastern section, the climate is mountainous but also quite humid because the ocean greatly influences this temperature. Average temperatures hover around 7.3 °C at high altitude, and annual precipitation can reach 1,000 mm.
In the Montélimar area, there is a Mediterranean climate. This is because there is a lot of vegetation here, which also modifies the microclimate of the soil and environment. Although precipitation mainly occurs in autumn and winter, these seasons are milder than in the rest of the department. The lowest average temperature is 5 °C and the highest average temperature is 23 °C.
What Are the Most Important Cities in the Drôme Department?
In terms of area, we have listed below the most important cities in the Drôme department:
- Montélimar,
- Valence,
- Bourg-lès-Valence,
- Romans-sur-Isère,
- Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux,
- Livron-sur-Drôme,
- Nyons, Crest,
- Tain-l’Hermitage,
- Chabeuil,
- Loriol-sur-Drôme
What are the most important municipalities in the Drôme department?
Here are the most important municipalities in the Drôme department ranked by largest area:
- Lus-la-Croix-Haute
- Bouvante
- Die
- Pierrelatte
- Saint-Julien-en-Quint
- Saint-Agnan-en-Vercors
- Boulc
- Glandage
- Vassieux-en-Vercors
- Montélimar
We have ranked these municipalities by population density, that is, by the number of inhabitants per km2:
- Valence
- Romans-sur-Isère
- Pierrelatte
- Portes-lès-Valence
- Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux
- Montélimar
- Bourg-lès-Valence
- Bourg-de-Péage
- Livron-sur-Drôme
- Crest
