The 1st arrondissement of Paris (Ier arrondissement) is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as le premier (the first). It is governed locally together with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th arrondissement, with which it forms the 1st sector of Paris (Paris-Centre).
Also known as Louvre, the arrondissement is situated principally on the right bank of the River Seine. It also includes the west end of the Île de la Cité. The locality is one of the oldest areas in Paris, the Île de la Cité having been the heart of the city of Lutetia, conquered by the Romans in 52 BC, while some parts on the right bank (including Les Halles) date back to the early Middle Ages.
It is the least populated of the city's arrondissements and one of the smallest by area, with a land area of only 1.83 km2 (0.705 sq. miles, or 451 acres). A significant part of the area is occupied by the Louvre Museum and the Tuileries Gardens. The Forum des Halles is the largest shopping mall in Paris.[2] Much of the remainder of the arrondissement is dedicated to business and administration.
The area now occupied by the first arrondissement attained its peak population in the period preceding the re-organization of Paris in 1860. In 1999, the population was 16,888, while the arrondissement hosted 63,056 jobs, making it one of the most active for business after the 2nd, 8th, and 9th.
1The peak of population actually occurred before 1861, but the arrondissement was created in 1860, so there are no figures before 1861.
Each of the 20 Paris arrondissements is divided into four quarters (quartiers). The table below lists the four quarters of the 1st arrondissement:
figures from 1999 French census
Korean Air's France office is in the 1st arrondissement.[3]
At one time Air Inter's head office was located in the first arrondissement.[4] When Minerve, an airline, existed, its head office was in the first arrondissement.[5]
In terms of state-operated schools, the first arrondissement has two nursery schools (écoles maternelles), two primary schools (écoles élémentaires), one école polyvalente, one high school (collège), and one sixth-form college (lycée).[6]
The state-operated nursery schools are École Maternelle Auxerrois and École Maternelle Sourdiere.[6] The state-operated primary schools are École Élémentaire Arbre Sec and École Élémentaire D'Argenteuil.[6][7] The arrondissement has one école polyvalente, École Polyvalente Cambon.[8] Collège Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is the sole state-operated high school in the arrondissement.[9] Lycée Professionnel Commercial Pierre Lescot is the sole state-operated sixth-form college in the first arrondissement.[10]Private primary and secondary institutions in the arrondissement include École Élémentaire Privée Notre-Dame-Saint-Roch, École du 2nd Degré Professionnel Privée Pigier, and École Technologique Privée de Dessin Technique et Artistique Sornas.[6]
